markf":ialxq585 said:
Stembridge has to be one the all time great basketball radio annoucer's,When i was a kid,i would put the ol transistor 9volt radio under my pillow at night and listen to Stembridge do the Dallas Chap's games,When they moved to SA i was dissapointed,but one good thing at night time i could tune in that radio dail to 1200 [i think :?: ] and pick up the Chaps,oh i mean the Spurs game up,Good ol days.
Well, the story was more than a few weeks ago ... and I do remember going to Game 6 of the 1979 series against Washington where the Spurs blew a 3-1 lead ... a few months after I moved to SA and I became a Spurs fan ... I still can remember going to games at the old Hemisfair more than I remember going to games at the Alamodome and ATT Center (even though I had season tickets for several years, mostly at the Dome)...
By the way, that series is credited with one of the great lines in sports, "The opera ain't over until the fat lady sings," credited to Bullets coach Dick Motta. However, he stole it from long-time San Antonio sportscaster and columnist Dan Cook.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/colu ... 20c54.html
Tim Griffin: Stembridge reminisces about days as Spurs' first announcer
Web Posted: 06/11/2007 12:39 AM CDT
San Antonio Express-News
Terry Stembridge has never forgotten his association with the Spurs.
Sitting on his couch at his Kilgore home, the team's original play-by-play announcer still intently follows the Spurs during the playoffs.
It's kind of hard for him not to because his memories run deeply. He was one of the first employees hired when the team started as the Dallas Chaparrals in the American Basketball Association in 1967.
He followed the team to San Antonio in the summer of 1973, working with the team six seasons. When he left, he had a streak of calling 1,252 consecutive games  every one in the team's history to that point.
But during the first summer in San Antonio, Stembridge sometimes wondered if the franchise would succeed.
"I remember being here in October and wondering what I was doing here," Stembridge said. "Then it took off."
Stembridge's final game was one of the most heartbreaking losses in Spurs history.
That loss to Washington in Game 7 of the 1979 Eastern Conference finals is something Stembridge remembers to this day  and not only because it was the last basketball game he did on the radio.
"There was a really important foul call against Billy Paultz that John Vanak called that turned the momentum around," Stembridge said. "We were ahead that whole game, and I thought we would win. It was a tough one to lose."
That loss came on a Friday night. Stembridge was at his new job the following Monday morning, still wondering if he had made the right decision.
Stembridge did occasional Spurs games on television later in his career and twice turned down a chance to become the voice of the Dallas Mavericks. He also was offered a chance to call the Dallas Cowboys games in the mid-1990s.
Stembridge, 69, has thrived financially according to friends and never regretted leaving pro sports behind.
"Early on, I kind of missed it, but I've had a wonderful several decades since I left," Stembridge said. "I've enjoyed the oil and gas business. In it, the old guy still has a place. I'm hoping there's still a chance for me."
