NBC Using AI to Bring Beloved NBA Narrator Jim Fagan Back From the Grave

The late Jim Fagan's iconic voice defined National Basketball Association (NBA) promos throughout the 1990s and early 2000s — and now, NBC is bringing that voice back from the dead using AI. In a press release, the broadcaster announced that it's teaming up with the family of the beloved sports narrator, who died from complications related to Parkinson's disease in 2017, to clone his voice for new coverage, promotions, and title sequences when basketball season resumes in October. Fagan's voice became synonymous with the NBA — and, before that, with wrestling — decades ago. In its statement, NBC attempted to pay homage to the narrator's ubiquity. "For many basketball fans, Jim’s unique and recognizable voice immediately conjures a deep sense of nostalgia for a special time in NBA history," Rick Cordella, the president of NBC Sports, said in the press release. "His voice perfectly captured the magnitude of the heavyweight matchups and stars that he was introducing." In this case, at ... Read full article.