© Peter Casey/Imagn
Longtime NBA commentator Doris Burke is one of the most polarizing figures at ESPN. It seems that, love her or hate her, every NBA fan seems to have a strong opinion on Burke. And unfortunately for the veteran color analyst, she gave fuel to the fire of the hater during Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals.
During the third quarter of Oklahoma City’s 128-126 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves, T-Wolves star Rudy Gobert, who is French, dunked on German OKC center Isaiah Hartenstein. That prompted perhaps one of the worst jokes you will ever hear on an NBA broadcast.
Doris 😭 pic.twitter.com/w6aEoU9jNS
— CJ Fogler 🫡 (@cjzero) May 27, 2025
“I don’t know much about history, but I know the French and German don’t like one another. And Rudy says ‘Bonjour, Mr. Hartenstein. Have a little bit of that left-handed dunk.”
The punchline, of course was, that the German Nazi party invaded France during World War II, sparking a hatred beftween the two. However, it has been nearly a century since World War II and Hartenstein’s father is also an African-American man who went to the University of Oregon. So yeah, Burke’s joke didn’t just miss the mark, it wasn’t even close, and fans were quick to call her out over it.
“I know the French and Germans don’t like each other but BONJOUR Hartenstein” -Doris Burke pic.twitter.com/qoD9wqETTW
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) May 27, 2025
“DidDoris Burke just bring up the German occupation of France inWorld War II???” one fan on X asked incredulously.
Personally, I don’t mind Doris Burke. She’s much worse than many of her significantly worse male counterparts. But this was definitely not one of her finest moments and a real “know your audience” type of situation. Also, something tells me that Rudy Gobert probably doesn’t feel any type of way about Germany unless France is playing them in a soccer or basketball game.