For most basketball team personnel and fans, the injured list garners a negative connotation because it sidelines athletes, alters routines and threatens the longevity of playing careers, like that of Robbie Hummel.
Sometimes, though, athletes simply get unlucky and suffer injuries because of external factors, some of which are not even related to the game itself. Then when one fully recovers, it can seem like a matter of time before they are penciled in on the injured list and within a state of limbo. Oftentimes, injuries on any given night seem inevitable, and unfortunately for Hummel, he knows this tale all too well.
Throughout his collegiate and professional career, Hummel experienced a deluge of obstacles when it came to staying healthy. As a top recruit out of Valparaiso High School, he matriculated at Purdue University where he studied management and played for the Boilermakers men’s basketball team.
Following a successful freshman season in which he was named a member of the First Team All-Big Ten, Hummel suffered from back spasms and a broken vertebra, limiting his availability and minutes on the court. The next year amid a stretch of 10 straight wins in conference play, Hummel tore his right ACL and in recovery, re-tore it, forcing him to sit out of his senior year and redshirt to play again and prove his worth.
After his redshirt senior year where he stayed relatively healthy and was named the recipient of the Thomas A. Brady Comeback Award, Hummel was drafted 58th overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2012. In that first year though, he played professionally in Spain and endured a right meniscus injury.
Upon his recovery, he took the court with the Timberwolves in 2013, appearing in 98 games over two seasons with the team. In the middle of that second year, his professional career was cut short when he fractured the fourth metacarpal in his right hand and was ruled out indefinitely – but he never gave up on the NBA or the sport of basketball.
As a native of Valparaiso, Indiana, Hummel was often around the hardwood either as a player or a fan. The game was rooted in the area’s culture and a regular part of people’s lives, especially in the wintertime when the weather was not conducive to playing sports outdoors.
Whether it was watching Bryce Drew hit “The Shot” for Valparaiso University, attending high school basketball games in his youth, or following the Chicago Bulls’ dynasty of the 1990s, basketball was the center of Hummel’s world.
“I was a kid that filled out 20 brackets just to see if I could get one that was right,” Hummel said. “….I loved to play and I still love to play. I wish I could move better – now that I’m 33, I don’t move great – but I love the game; I’ve been around it for such a long time.”
Upon enduring the injury as a member of the Timberwolves, Hummel traveled to Syracuse University to participate in Sportscaster U. The program, offered for free to NBA players, was organized by the National Basketball Players’ Association in conjunction with the university’s heralded S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and taught by Syracuse Orangemen color commentator Matt Park.
Over the years, some of the camp’s attendees have included Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Tobias Harris, all of whom learn from Park and other program contributors in settings meant to replicate the industry.
“It was just a crash course in all things broadcasting,” Hummel said. “….We called a game for TV; we called a game for radio; we did a demonstration at Syracuse’s practice facility like you’d see on a College GameDay-type setting. You got a really good idea of all the things you could possibly do in the media.”
Hummel began the subsequent year playing overseas in Italy with Olimpia Milano with the thought of broadcasting in the back of his mind. It became more prevalent though when he tore the labrum in his shoulder, forcing him to return to the United States to get surgery and undergo rehabilitation for six months.
During this time, Purdue Boilermakers head coach Matt Painter reached out to Hummel and asked if he wanted to help out with the team, offering his home as a place of residence. Hummel agreed to work with the team in West Lafayette, Ind. and continued to work his way back from the injury.
Shortly thereafter, the Big Ten Network called Hummel to inquire about his interest in becoming involved with some of its in-studio coverage of conference tournament games. To reiterate, Hummel had not given up on returning to play in the National Basketball Association but wanted to experiment working in the space and gradually adapted as time went on.
In fact, he proceeded in the 2016 preseason with the Denver Nuggets but was waived before the start of the regular season. As a result, he signed to play internationally in Russia but longed to be home with his family and friends. Making one last attempt at an NBA comeback, Hummel was preparing for a workout with the Milwaukee Bucks but hurt his back the day before, an occurrence he considered a sign that it was time to move on.
Luckily for Hummel, he had accepted the chance to appear on the Big Ten Network and was noticed by a broadcasting agent during the stint. Despite lacking broadcasting experience, the agent was interested in potentially representing him and the two kept in touch regarding future opportunities in the industry.
Once Hummel knew his playing days were over, he and his agent worked on closing a deal for him to join the Big Ten Network and ESPN as a color commentator and studio analyst. He looks at the misfortunes in his career on the bright side, associating his various injuries as steps to his discovery of a career in sports media.
“I thought about how, in a way, not wanting to play overseas and giving up professional basketball at the age of 28 or 29; I kind of beat people my age to the profession,” Hummel said. “A lot of people play until they’re 32-33 years old and I have been doing this for five years now. They’re retiring now and trying to get into this and I kind of beat people my age to it.”
Although Hummel has continued taking the floor as part of FIBA 3×3 World Cup – in which he was named the 2019 USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year after leading his team to a gold medal finish – broadcasting is his primary focus and means to stay connected to the game. His travel schedule is quite intensive and sometimes involves multiple cities in the span of just a few days in which he broadcasts basketball games on different mediums.
This requires continuous preparation to be sure he is ready for the next broadcast and his process is intensive: it consists of watching 30-40 clips of individual player highlights using Synergy Sports Technology; compiling a spreadsheet with relevant stats and information; and keeping a notebook with information about the previous games he has called.
Yet relying on comprehensive preparation and knowledge of tendencies usually goes out the window by gametime, instead focusing on what is taking place on the floor and reacting to it. When the game takes place, the preparation instead serves the purpose of contextualizing situations and enabling Hummel to more effectively think in the moment.
“I make a sheet – but I only make one just because writing stuff down helps me remember,” Hummel said. “I think that I’ve gotten to a point where I’ve been very comfortable not having to look down. If I put it on the sheet, I look it over before the game and I can draw from that as I’m watching the game. I think [that] has been a process because early on, I’m sure I was looking down a decent amount and you’re missing stuff.”
Just as most color commentators aim to do, Hummel brings a different perspective to the broadcast than his play-by-play announcer thanks to the perspectives afforded to him playing professional basketball. He tries to simplify his deft knowledge of the game, acquired through years of experience at different levels, to make it coherent for the average viewer. He looks at Jay Bilas and Jim Spanarkel for validation in his style in which he simply tells it like it is using familiar vernacular to best serve his audience.
“I think I would be somebody who’s not speaking in cliché,” he said. “I think that I really try to watch what’s happening on the floor, and I think my favorite guys that do this that I listen to have been people who have been very good at making complex basketball plays more simple for the viewer.”
Hummel is not far removed from playing professional basketball when comparing him to other color commentators or studio analysts – but the haste evolution of the sport has engendered him to adapt. The game today is predicated on an increased volume of three-point shooting and a positionless style of play prioritizing defensive matchups. Much like sports media, its rapid transformation coerces flexibility in thinking and versatility in performance.
“I think that going through those situations and understanding how you want to guard these things is really beneficial to then talk about that on air,” Hummel said. “You can see the way that teams are scheming and you can kind of relate [it to] your own experience.”
Throughout his time working in sports media, Hummel has paired with several play-by-play announcers – most regularly Jason Benetti, Brandon Gaudin and Kevin Kugler. In frequently working with the same group of play-by-play announcers (although that has somewhat changed this year), Hummel is able to do his part in fostering synergy, facilitating a more seamless broadcast.
The familiarity with Benetti, for example, kept Hummel from interfering with his call of David Jean-Baptiste’s game-winning three-point shot on Westwood One Radio. The last-second heave, which took place just past halfcourt, defeated the Furman Paladins in the Southern Conference Tournament championship game to send Jean-Baptiste’s team, the Chattanooga Mocs, to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2016.
“He talked for a minute straight and I’m glad I wasn’t jumping in or interrupting him because he was so good,” Hummel said of Benetti’s call. “Just kind of taking that in and watching those Chattanooga kids get to go to the NCAA tournament; then on the other side of that [to] see Furman – and you hate this part – the devastation on one side [and] the elation on the other.”
The process of cultivating synergy demands time and genuine investment, along with cooperation on both sides in order to effectuate a compelling broadcast product for consumers on a nightly basis. Through activities such as going out to dinner or conversing about topics not related to the job, colleagues are able to learn more about one another and bring a personal element to the broadcast when appropriate.
“I think getting to know your partner is incredibly helpful,” Hummel said. “I’ve been very lucky that I’ve worked with great people. It’s something that I definitely recognize and am thankful for because those guys are great.”
When Hummel is doing games for Westwood One Radio, it is more difficult to find space in which to intersperse his analysis and opinion than it is on the Big Ten Network and ESPN. During one broadcast, it was apparent to him that the Michigan State Wolverines were pushing the pace of play during the NCAA tournament, necessitating the play-by-play announcer to keep up with the game and call the action.
“You feel like you’re maybe stealing a paycheck in the sense that it’s so much more of a play-by-play guy’s game,” Hummel explained regarding broadcasting games on radio, “and it makes sense because the play-by-play guy has to really let the viewer know what’s going on. TV is much more of [an] analyst’s game because you can watch; you can see it with your two eyes [and] the play-by-play guy doesn’t have to say every little thing that’s happening.”
Hummel enjoys calling college basketball games and hopes to continue doing it for a long time, but he would like to pair it with another job down the road: calling NBA games. Last season during an outbreak of COVID-19 within the Chicago Bulls organization, he was asked to step in on a few broadcasts to fill in for radio analyst Bill Wennington. It was representative of a full-circle moment, as Hummel grew up listening to former Bulls announcer Doug Collins and followed the dynasty led by Hall of Fame guard Michael Jordan since the team played just one hour away from his hometown.
Yet it came in an unfavorable circumstance, a scenario Hummel did not wish had occurred, but nonetheless gave him his first chance at broadcasting an NBA game. It was the beginning of an unprecedented stretch in which Hummel worked with a slew of different commentators – including K.C. Johnson on three minutes’ notice for one game in January – and experienced back-to-back game-winning shots by all-star forward DeMar DeRozan.
“To do the Bulls games and get to be back in that setting was terrific,” Hummel said. “….It was a great time [and] I hope I get to do more. I hated the fact that I was doing it because Stacey King and Bill Wennington got COVID; that’s not what you want to have happen to get that opportunity.”
It just so happened that during his stretch on the Bulls broadcasts, another team had experienced a similar outbreak of COVID-19 and needed Hummel to be prepared not to fill in on its broadcast – but to potentially suit up and appear in an NBA game. On Dec. 19, the Bulls were facing the Los Angeles Lakers and Hummel was not sure whether he would be broadcasting or playing in the game. Thankfully, no Lakers players ended up testing positive for the infectious disease and Hummel was behind the mic.
In a similar mold to what Kirk Herbstreit just completed in regularly broadcasting college football with Chris Fowler on ESPN and NFL Thursday Night Football games with Al Michaels on Amazon Prime Video, Hummel has interest in potentially one day taking on a dual role. There are subtle differences between basketball at the college and professional levels, according to Hummel, largely because of the elevated style of play in the latter. It was after filling in on the Bulls’ broadcasts when he recognized the margin between both entities in terms of shot-making and athleticism.
“I love the atmosphere of college basketball and the pageantry,” Hummel said. “I think that playing for your school is such a special, unique thing for these kids and just the atmospheres that we see in college hoops…. To see those things up close is very special but the NBA, from a talent perspective, is just [at] a different level.”
Off the court, a difference between these two levels of basketball is in the responsibilities of the athletes. In college, the athletes are students majoring in different subjects; therefore, they are responsible for attending classes and achieving a satisfactory level of academic performance. In the NBA, the athletes are students of the game of basketball, immersing themselves in the sport although some pursue additional outside business ventures. No matter the level or the circumstance though, there is a quality Hummel believes he must exhibit to earn and maintain the respect of team personnel, fans and colleagues.
“I think fairness is the biggest part,” he said. “[Being] critical and giving a guy his props when those props are due; [and] it’s not personal saying a kid takes a bad shot or makes a bad decision. [It] doesn’t mean he’s a bad player or a bad kid. I think as long as you’re verbalizing that, it’s okay to be critical when that time [comes].”
Hummel has broadcast the first two weeks of the NCAA tournament on Westwood One Radio and would like to one day have a chance to do it on television. If the right situation were to become available in which to coach, he would consider lending his vision and expertise to help a team win in that way as well. No matter what the future holds for him though, he aspires to remain involved in the game of basketball, the sport that continuously knocked him down but, in so doing, gave him a lucky break and fostered a new career.
“This is a career that I want to do for a long time,” Hummel said. “I feel fortunate that I get to do it because it is a privilege to get to watch high-level basketball whether it’s in the Big Ten or other conferences or doing some Bulls games…. I am fortunate in that regard and it is kind of crazy to look back as to how it can be a silver lining.”
For athletes, stepping away from any sport can be a difficult challenge, leading them to want to remain immersed in it. Throughout his time playing basketball, Robbie Hummel had a sense that his future may lie working in sports media since he was always fascinated with who was calling the games in which he played and listening to their commentary.
He also became friendly with Larry Clisby, the play-by-play announcer at Purdue University, and, from him, learned about the industry and the art of broadcasting itself. Without his indefatigable drive to succeed in a new chapter of his life, Hummel may not have made it to where he is today: one of the nation’s top college basketball analysts with an auspicious future ahead.
“I think taking advantage and picking the brain of the play-by-play guy at your college when you’re there [and] talking to guys who are doing games [is important],” Hummel advised former athletes, “and then if anything kind of comes by chance, [it could] maybe be something that you could do. I do look back and [ponder] if I had said ‘No’ to [the] Big Ten Network and said, ‘You know what? I’m just going to focus on helping the team.’ I might not be doing this.”
