Columnist Tim Graham: Korach backs King for Hall

Growing up in Los Angeles, Ken Korach used to tune his radio to a faraway voice on a San Francisco frequency.

Everyone in Southern California was familiar with the sounds of Vin Scully and Chick Hearn. But, even compared to them, Korach knew he was listening to someone special.

"I used to tell my friends there's this guy in the Bay Area who's unbelievable," said Korach, the longtime UNLV football and basketball announcer.

That guy was Bill King, the legendary voice of the Golden State Warriors, Oakland Raiders and Oakland A's.

Korach, as luck would have it, started working with King on A's broadcasts three summers ago (games heard locally on KSHP 1400-AM). But never did Korach think he would be campaigning for his idol-turned-colleague.

When the UNLV basketball team traveled to Springfield, Mass., to play Kansas in November, Korach joined the Rebels for a tour of the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Once there, Korach paid special attention to the wall honoring recipients of the Curt Gowdy Award, honoring the game's great print and broadcast journalists. He saw names like Dick Enberg, Marv Albert, Billy Packer, Dick Vitale and Hearn.

But he did not see the name of Bill King. So Korach decided to push his partner for induction. He already has written a nominating letter to Don Gibson, the executive vice president of the Hall of Fame.

"I thought it would be a fun project," Korach said.

"It's important to note that Bill doesn't need to be in the Basketball Hall of Fame to validate his career. He doesn't crave the recognition. He's rather unassuming that way."

King is no stranger to Las Vegas. He once lived here and has called A's games from the Cashman Field broadcast booth the past three years during Big League Weekend. The A's also played their first six regular-season games at Cashman while Oakland Coliseum was being refurbished in 1996.

King, with his Luciferian mustache, beard and devilishly beady eyes, gained national fame on NFL Films as a background voice on Raiders highlights. But Korach claims King should be mainly remembered for his basketball work.

"I don't know one person who has listened to Bill King and doesn't think he's at least among the best whoever lived," Korach said. "Many think he's the best who ever lived.

"He brought such a passion and love of the game to each broadcast. He had such an influence not only on aspiring broadcasters, but on basketball fans in the Bay Area. He meant so much to people in that area and all through the West."

Another valley resident, Bob Blum, places King on top -- and Blum should know. Blum, like King, has been in the broadcasting business for more than 50 years. As producer of the Raiders radio network, he hired King.

"I'd say if he isn't the best basketball announcer I've ever heard, he's in the top two or three," said Blum, a member of the American Football Foundation Hall of Fame who now produces Las Vegas Stars and Thunder broadcasts in addition to calling UNLV women's basketball. "And he's probably one of the top four or five baseball guys I've ever heard.

"He's great. He should be in the Basketball Hall of Fame."

King utilizes a staccato rhythm enhanced by a remarkable vocabulary. Korach calls him a "walking Webster's."

"His main strengths were his knowledge of the game and ability to rise to the occasion," Korach said. "I don't think anybody has been able to paint a picture and rise to a crescendo like him.

"He was extremely fast. He could get the ball from point A to point B and be so detailed in the process."

Added Blum: "He's very intelligent, yet he doesn't talk down to people. That's what makes him so good."

When listening to tapes of his own broadcasts, particularly Rebel basketball, Korach can detect traces of King.

"I know there are some Bill King influences in my play-by-play," Korach said. "The crispness of his style, the ability not only to describe where the ball was but where the defense was playing ... He painted such a wonderful picture.

"The biggest influence he's had on me is the passion and the pure love he brings to the table every day. And that's a wonderful gift he has."

* STATIC: The next edition of "Goin' Deep" on Fox Sports West examines the International Olympic Committee bribery scandal. The comprehensive look, hosted by Chris Myers, will debut Sunday at 9 p.m. ... Jim Nantz, CBS Sports' NFL and PGA anchor, was named the 1998 Sportscaster of the Year by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association. Nantz also hosted the Winter Olympics and NCAA men's basketball tournament last year. ... The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show will be carried for the 15th straight year by the USA Network. The event, hosted by Joe Garagiola, will consist of two three-hour segments, Monday and Tuesday at 8 p.m.

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