Empty the Bench

Usually meek NCAA hoops analyst Dick Vitale’s mouth got him in trouble yesterday, as he accidentally revealed the contents of a confidential conversation with Florida coach Billy Donovan on air. Known as a master of subtlety, it’s shocking to learn Mr. Vitale actually missed one of his colleague’s cues and that the demure commentator speaks so freely when the mics are off. At the time of the slip up, he was doing a radio bit with Mike Griffith and John Adams of the News Sentinel.

Griffith tried to get Vitale’s attention but the popular basketball analyst continued his conversation with someone at the Broken Egg restaurant in Siesta Key, Fla. , while he was on the air with Griffith and Adams. Vitale said Donovan told him in confidence that NBA scouts were making a big mistake if they rated Florida’s Joakim Noah ahead of teammate Al Horford.

Perhaps what’s more surprising than his obliviousness is that Vitale’s babblings were actually in the form of a coherent thought.