Jimmy Smith 'in the gym'

Basketball and football games in Chicago are more than just mere sporting events. There is a quality to the games that puts them more on par with a happening social event and announcer Jimmy Smith has become the preeminent emcee of these affairs.

Basketball and football games in Chicago are more than just mere sporting events. There is a quality to the games that puts them more on par with a happening social event, and announcer Jimmy Smith has become the preeminent emcee of these affairs.

Smith, a retired Chicago fireman and fire engineer, started announcing games in 1977 on a whim at Chicago State University and hasn’t looked back. He announces games for the Chicago Public League, local tournaments like Pro-Am and Sonny Parker’s Summer League and community colleges. He’s been retired since 2006 and that gives him a lot of time to do what he loves – being in the gym.

“Back in 1977, when I was a senior at Chicago State, the announcer for the game didn’t show up. They asked me to just do the starting lineups and it went well and I’ve done it ever since, just having fun,” Smith said.

It’s been 30 years since that inauspicious beginning, and he’s now in demand around the city. This summer, he’s worked at Kennedy King College, and he’s announced the games for the Sonny Parker Tournament at Homan Square. Parker thinks he’s got the best announcer around.

“He brings a lot of excitement. He knows the game and he knows the players – I couldn’t have it without him,” Parker said. “When he’s not here it’s more like a tennis match. Jimmy gets the crowd involved, plus he’s a fan. He has passion for the game and he enjoys it, and everybody feeds off of his energy.”

And Smith purposely tries to bring positive energy to the games he calls. He doesn’t have a lot of steadfast rules for announcing. It comes very naturally to him, but he does adhere to one philosophy.

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