Cavs Preview 2024: Five years in, play-by-play announcer Tim Alcorn follows in the steps of greatness

To be called a Joe Tait disciple is the ultimate compliment to Cavaliers radio play-by-play man Tim Alcorn. He's now entering his sixth year with the Cavs after making a monumental jump from the high school ranks to the NBA. Formerly at WEOL 930-AM in Elyria for 27 years, Alcorn interviewed for the Cleveland job when Tait stepped down in April 2011. That position went to John Michael — currently the play-by-play announcer on FanDuel Sports Network Ohio — but Alcorn was supposedly neck-and-neck for the opening. The 61-year-old Alcorn finally got his chance in September 2019. "It happened so fast," Alcorn said. "Fred McLeod passed away. It was so close to the regular season. I was in contention for the job when Joe stepped away. John Michael got the job. He does a wonderful job. It was my understanding that I was right there with John." Cavs director of broadcasting Dave Dombrowski shifted Michael to television and brought Alcorn onboard to do radio. Alcorn, who lives in Westlake with wife Diane, was very close to Tait, who passed away in October 2021 at age 83. "We had a father-son relationship," Alcorn said. "I still miss him every day. "For me to have that relationship and to sit in the Joe Tait Perch (at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse), it's the honor of my life." Fans have told him he sounds like Tait, which is the "highest compliment I can receive." "There are things Joe instilled in me that I work into my broadcast. I'd be a fool not to." Through the years, Alcorn said he's become more comfortable "being who I am." It wasn't ideal his first couple years dealing with COVID and working games out of the studio. Eventually, his personality emerged on the air. "You've got to be who you are," he said. "When I was at WEOL doing high school sports, I tried to make it sound as professional as I could. I carried those concepts to the next level." He said he has a great relationship with color analyst Jim Chones. "Jim and I have fun on the broadcast," Alcorn said. He said they lock in if it's a tight game. The other night in Detroit, Chones was singing a Motown song when they came out of a break. "Jim is awesome," Alcorn said. "We enjoy each other's company. He has that knowledge. He won an NBA title with Magic (Johnson) and those guys with the Lakers. He knows the game. "We want to have fun, be informative and entertain. It's not a comedy show. I want to be accurate and descriptive." He said the 82-game season is a marathon. "I get to have the opportunity to call the best basketball players in the world," Alcorn said. "It's an incredible opportunity to do this. It's a blessing to have this job." He started at WEOL in 1992. "I loved every minute of it," Alcorn said. "I wasn't looking to move. I love high school sports. That gets in your blood. It's the essence of sports." Now, he'll be calling the play-by-play for a team that has championship aspirations. "When they are playing well, it's certainly more enjoyable," Alcorn said. "It's a lot of fun. I got to do Game 7 of an NBA playoff series (against Orlando). "We have some really good guys. The Cavs believe in character. They are fun to root for. Being on the cusp of a championship makes it a blast." He describes his gig as a dream job. "I grew up as a little guy wanting to be a sportscaster," Alcorn said. "That's all I wanted to do. To get this job as late as I did in my career, I still pinch myself. This is an absolute dream job."I am forever grateful to Dave (Dombrowski) to have faith in me. Here was a guy doing high school basketball. I think I'm the only one to do it." His broadcasts on WEOL made listeners think they were listening to college or professional basketball. "There's no reason you can't elevate the call of the game to a professional level," Alcorn said. "That was my goal. Joe would always say, 'Timothy, you can call NBA basketball.'" Contact Bob Finnan at rfinnan30@gmail.com. Follow him @BobCavsinsider on X.