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Ralph Lawler Honored With Curt Gowdy Award

By Seth Kimbrell

(Los Angeles, Ca ? Saturday, February 28, 2009) LA Clippers play by play announcer Ralph Lawler shares a laugh with stage manager Brittany Savelkoul, left, and partner Mike Smith. (Photo by Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
(Los Angeles, Ca ? Saturday, February 28, 2009) LA Clippers play by play announcer Ralph Lawler shares a laugh with stage manager Brittany Savelkoul, left, and partner Mike Smith. (Photo by Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) /
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On Friday, the NBA announced that longtime LA Clippers broadcaster Ralph Lawler will be given the award for outstanding broadcaster.

Oh me, oh my! LA Clippers fans have always held a special place in their hearts for Ralph Lawler, but the NBA has announced that the voice of the Clippers will be immortalized with the Curt Gowdy Media Award

Lawler, 80 years old, who will be retiring at the end of the 2018-19 season, has been the primary voice of the Clippers since 1978, missing only the 1981-82 and 1984-85 seasons. That amounts to more than 3000 Clippers games called by the legendary broadcaster, starting when the team moved from Buffalo, New York to become the San Diego Clippers.

Ralph Lawler was one of the brightest points on the team for some of the worse years for the team, and he elevated some legendary Clippers moments. Who can forget the sound of Lawler losing his mind when DeAndre Jordan dunked the soul out of Brandon Knight?

Fans could always count on Lawler’s enthusiasm when calling a particularly vicious Chris Paul to DeAndre Jordan alley-oop (The lob, the jam!), a Blake Griffin Poster (Slaaaaaam dunk!) or a J.J. Redick three pointer off of a screen (Biiingo!). Calls like these, as well as Lawler’s Law (first to 100 wins folks; it’s the law) help to cement his legacy.

Through the 90s, fans were always entertained by the witty banter between Lawler and Bill Walton, his color commentary partner. He would then be joined by Mike Smith from 2002 to 2017, when Bruce Bowen took the seat next to him. In this, his final year, Lawler has been joined by several voices from the Clippers’ past, including Walton, Corey Maggette and Billy Crystal.

Ralph Lawler joins some other big names in broadcasting as recipients of this award. Previous honorees in broadcasting include Doris Burke, Craig Sager, Dick Vitale, Jim Nantz and Bob Costas. Fans of the team would agree that Ralph Lawler deserves to have his name in such rarefied air.

This is not the first award that Ralph Lawler can put on his mantle. Earlier this year, Lawler was awarded the Bob Miller Television Play-by-Play award, the top award given by Southern California Sports Broadcasters. Ralph also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

For 40 years, no matter how much uncertainty there was with the team, fans could count on the voice of Ralph Lawler calling the game. A veritable iron man, Ralph Lawler only missed 3 games in his 40 year career as the primary voice of the Clippers.

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Ralph will surely be missed by fans of the LA Clippers. For most of us, it’s impossible to think of a game without hearing Ralph’s voice in the background, detailing the action. Receiving the Curt Gowdy Award is a fitting honor as he approaches the final half of his last season with the Clippers.

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