Tolbert to split radio duties with Barnett
Popular sports-talk host and former Warrior Tom Tolbert will be part of Golden State’s radio broadcasts this season as Jim Barnett takes on a greatly reduced role with the team.
The Warriors announced Wednesday that Tolbert will serve as a color analyst alongside play-byplay man Tim Roye for all home games on KGMZ-FM (95.7 The Game). Barnett will be the analyst for the team’s road games.
It makes for an intriguing situation. Tolbert’s chief employer is KNBR, a direct competitor of KGMZ. But he’s a good friend and former teammate of Warriors coach Steve Kerr and has long made it known that he’d be interested in working Warriors games. KNBR obviously gave him the OK to do so.
Meanwhile, Barnett, 75, is stepping back as the younger guard takes the lead.
In July, it was announced that the broadcast veteran would give up his post as color analyst on Warriors’ TV games — a job he held for more than 30 years — making way for Kelenna Azubuike. At the time, Barnett moved over to the radio post and the team seemed to imply that he would be there for every game.
But now that workload has been cut in half.
“It’s the Warriors’ decision. That’s all I can tell you,” Barnett said, when contacted Wednesday. “That’s as blunt as I can be.”
The Warriors are in a potentially delicate situation with Barnett if fans perceive this as a slap to the face. In 2014, Golden State infamously prepared to oust him from the TV booth — a decision that angered viewers who appreciated, and counted on, his insightful analysis. There was such an uproar, in fact, that a campaign was launched to save Barnett’s job and the Warriors eventually backtracked.
On Wednesday Barnett said, “I’m not ready to retire, and I’m not tired. I could do all 82 games on TV, or all 82 on radio. I didn’t write this script, but I’m OK with it.”
Barnett added that, if forced to choose, he’s happier with the road games.
“I prefer the road,” he said. “You travel with the team, so you’re around them more. So I like that aspect of it.”
Tolbert, who served a color analyst on the team’s broadcast from 2013-16, spent three seasons playing for the Warriors (198992). During that time, the Warriors reached the playoffs twice, including a trip to the Western Conference semifinals in 1991.
Overall, Tolbert played seven seasons in the NBA, averaging 6.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game over 312 regular-season contests with the Charlotte Hornets, Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Clippers and Warriors.
For the fourth consecutive season, 95.7 The Game will serve as the flagship radio station for Warriors basketball, broadcasting all preseason and regular season games.
Programming on 95.7 The Game will once again include an additional 60 minutes of coverage to each of the existing 30-minute pre- and postgame programs as well as heightened in-season daily Warriors coverage featuring both Warriors and NBA-themed shows.