Jim Spanarkel
Jim Spanarkel | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 28, 1957 Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Basketball player, television commentator, financial planner |
| Years active | 1979–1984 (player), 1998–present (commentator) |
| Known for | NBA player for Philadelphia 76ers and Dallas Mavericks; college basketball analyst for CBS and Fox Sports |
James Gerard Spanarkel (born June 28, 1957) is an American television commentator known for his work on College Basketball on CBS and Fox College Hoops. He is a former professional basketball athlete who played for the Philadelphia 76ers and Dallas Mavericks, and he competed at the collegiate level for Duke University, where he earned All-American honors.
High school
Spanarkel grew up in Jersey City, New Jersey, and attended Hudson Catholic Regional High School. During his time there, he played alongside Mike O'Koren, who also went on to have an NBA career.
College and professional basketball
At Duke University, Spanarkel achieved First Team Acclaim All-American status and was named First Team All-ACC. He became the first player in Duke history to surpass 2,000 career points. Over three straight seasons (1977–1979), he was recognized as the team’s Most Valuable Player and served as captain during both his junior and senior years. In 1978, he earned the title of NCAA East Regional Most Outstanding Player as Duke finished second to Kentucky in the national championship. Additionally, Spanarkel played baseball for Duke for two seasons. He completed his degree in 1979 and obtained a real estate broker license the following year.
Spanarkel was chosen by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 16th pick in the first round of the 1979 NBA draft. After spending his rookie year (1979–80) with Philadelphia, he moved to the Dallas Mavericks, where he played four seasons. During the 1980–81 campaign, he led Dallas in scoring with an average of 14.4 points per game. His professional playing career ended in 1984 due to a wrist injury that kept him out for three months.
American broadcaster
For three decades, Spanarkel served as a television analyst for the Nets, most recently appearing on the YES Network. He worked alongside Ian Eagle as a color commentator before transitioning into studio hosting roles for pre-game and post-game broadcasts. His tenure with YES concluded prior to the 2020–21 season.
Currently, Spanarkel contributes to CBS Sports’ coverage of both regular season college basketball and the postseason, teaming with Spero Dedes. Having joined CBS in early 1998, he initially covered first and second round NCAA tournament games with Eagle across 17 tournaments. Starting in 2015, he advanced to regional weekend broadcasts, collaborating with Verne Lundquist on Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight matchups. Following Lundquist’s retirement in 2017, Spanarkel reunited with Eagle. In 2024, when Eagle succeeded Jim Nantz on CBS’s lead broadcast team, Spanarkel partnered with Dedes for coverage of the First Four and early rounds.
Outside of CBS, Spanarkel primarily provides analysis for Big East Conference regular season contests on FOX Sports. He has also acted as a studio analyst for NBA TV, contributing basketball commentary across CBS Sports, ESPN, Fox Sports, and YES Network platforms. Notably, he called international broadcasts of the 2013 NBA Finals alongside Eagle and has been lead announcer for events held at Upper Montclair.
Personal life
Spanarkel is married to Janet; together they have four children: James, Bridget, Stephanie, and Andrew. Professionally, he holds the position of First Vice President and is a certified financial planner at Merrill Lynch in New Jersey.
He makes his home in Rutherford, New Jersey.
NBA
Source
Regular season
|- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Philadelphia | 40 || 0 || 11.1 || .471 || .000 || .831 || 1.4 || 1.3 || .3 || .2 || 5.0 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Dallas | 82 || || 28.3 || .467 || .100 || .887 || 3.6 || 2.8 || 1.4 || .2 || 14.4 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Dallas | 82 || 1 || 21.4 || .479 || .333 || .853 || 2.6 || 2.5 || 1.0 || .1 || 10.1 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Dallas | 48 || 4 || 15.0 || .462 || .200 || .779 || 1.8 || 1.6 || .6 || .1 || 5.7 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Dallas | 7 || 0 || 7.7 || .438 || .500 || .692 || 1.0 || .7 || .9 || .0 || 3.4 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career | 259 || 5 || 20.4 || .470 || .250 || .855 || 2.5 || 2.2 || 1.0 || .1 || 9.7
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Philadelphia | 5 | 1.6 | .000 | – | 1.000 | .2 | .2 | .0 | .0 | .4
Honors
External links |