Starting next season, Bulls fans will listen to one of their own call games on TV.
Adam Amin was born in Elmhurst, grew up in Addison and lives downtown, and he has been a Bulls fan throughout. So pardon him if he pinches himself when he takes the mic for his first game as the team’s play-by-play voice next season.
“It’s a dream come true of a dream I didn’t know could exist. I never imagined this could happen,” said Amin, 33, who will take over for the retiring Neil Funk on NBC Sports Chicago. “[Eventually] you think, can this actually happen someday? And then you just want it. You want it more than anything.”
Amin has had a taste of it the last two seasons, filling in for Funk alongside analyst Stacey King on 10 road games. The two already have built a rapport that many new partners don’t have right away.
“When [Amin] and Stacey worked together, we received so much positive feedback that I know our fans are going to really enjoy the work of this new broadcast duo,” Bulls president and chief operating officer Michael Reinsdorf said in a statement. “Adam brings strong credentials to this role, as well as an energy, charisma and innate storytelling ability that help him immediately connect with his audience.”
The Bulls’ hiring of Amin brings to mind the White Sox’ hiring of Jason Benetti as their part-time play-by-play voice in 2016. Benetti was 32 at the time, and he has the same versatility as Amin, who has called pro and college sports on radio and TV, not to mention Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest.
In fact, Amin was in the running for the Sox job that went to Benetti, who became full time in 2019.
“When he got it, I was certainly disappointed because I thought that would be cool [being a] hometown voice,” Amin said. “[But] then I saw him performing the job, learned his story, what a diehard fan he was, how hard he works. I realized that’s what he was meant for.
“I watched from afar how he handled White Sox and ESPN duties. It’s not easy. It’s hard work. But I think I’m built for that.”
Amin indeed will have his plate full, too. He will continue to call Bears preseason games on Fox-32, and he just joined Fox Sports to call MLB and NFL games after spending almost 10 years at ESPN.
The Bulls will have a substitute announcer when conflicts arise, but Amin said he plans to call “a significant majority” of the team’s schedule. He has leaned on NBA, NFL and college basketball announcer Ian Eagle to help him navigate from job to job.
“I don’t think I would’ve taken the job if I didn’t feel I could deliver most of the games,” Amin said. “The last thing I want to do is under-deliver.”
Amin said his strongest traits are his adaptability, energy and passion. That came through loud and clear on perhaps his biggest call: Notre Dame’s Arike Ogunbowale hitting a pull-up jumper with one second left to upset UConn in the 2018 NCAA Women’s Final Four.
Amin can only hope the Bulls deliver more drama, and maybe even success. The kid in him who watched Bulls games in his parents’ basement can’t wait.
“Another element is just being a fan, thinking about this team in an entirely different context and connecting with it,” Amin said. “I’m an emotional guy, passionate. Now I can have passion for not only the job but the franchise.”
Contributing: Steve Greenberg
