Doris Burke Catching Heat Over Perceived “Kniggerbockers” Pronunciation During Playoff Game

Posted on by EDITORIAL FEATURES

ESPN sports analyst Doris Burke is catching some flak over what sounded like a racial slur to people watching The New York Knicks vs The Boston Celtics on television.

The incident happened when Knicks player Mikal Bridges sank a jump shot at the 3:21 mark, to give the New York Knicks a 111-104 lead over the Celtics.

The basket gave the Knicks the largest lead of the series on the road to extending their lead 3-1 at Madison Square Garden.

“The postseason clutch time has been a nightmare for the Boston Celtics. You know who it hasn’t been a nightmare for? The New York Knickerbockers,” Burke said.

Unfortunately for Doris Burke, it sounded as though she put too much emphasis on the letter “g” while pronouncing the Knickerbockers, making it sound as if she said “n##### bockers.”

Social media immediately lit up. On her Instagram account, her last post was lit up with questions.

“The New York what? one user asked, while another person chimed in, “Did Doris really say that? or am I tripping?”

Things got weird for the Boston Celtics, too. At the 2:58 mark, Jason Tatum turned his ankle and went down after scoring 42 points.

Tatum was rushed back to the locker room in a wheelchair and was out of the game for good, which helped the Knicks take the lead in the series with the score of 121-113.

So far, Burke has yet to address the perceived slight.