A Tribute to That Guy From And 1 Streetball Who Screams "OH BAY-BEE!"

To me, And 1 Streetball is like Haagen-Dazs to a fat lady on a diet: I know I should have nothing to do with it, but I can't help but indulge myself in it's delights. Furthermore, when I say I'm just gonna have a little "taste" of Streetball action, I inevitably find myself watching for as long as its on. You're probably thinking "15 consecutive minutes is the most any sane person can muster to view And 1 Streetball, much less any thing else that airs on ESPN 2." To this I say, "OHH BAY-BEE!"

More than the awesome player nicknames, high-flying dunks, constant alley-oops, ridiculous dribbling techniques that takes carrying the ball to the X-treme, and remarkable lack of defensive effort, what draws me in to wasting fractions of my life watching And 1 Streetball is that guy who screams "OHH BAY-BEE!" Every time "Hot Sauce" pulls his signature move "tha Boomerang" (Hot Sauce pretends to throw a one-handed pass past over a defender's shoulder. However the ball rises straight in the air and returns to him while the defender turns his head to look for the ball), every time "Helicopter" windmills on a fast break, and every time "8th Wonder" thunderously dunks an offensive rebound over some pretending ass, bitch-made defender, you can count on the signature "OH BAY-BEE!" to be emphatically yelled.

What distinguishes "Oh Bay-Bee!" guy from "traditional" announcers? First of all, he roams the court with a cordless mic, refusing to be constrained by things like a "scorer's table," or an "announcer's booth," and can be often times seen yelling encouragement to the player with the ball from directly behind said player. Secondly, his utter lack of journalistic skill can only be described as charming. Finally and most remarkable, is his ability to draw people into watching the sports equivalent of an Ashlee Simpson song through outright enthusiasm for a game which isn't "real," but somehow has a degree of credibility.

In case you are personally unfamiliar with this grand-champion of American culture, here's a video of his art performed. Good "OH BAY-BEE!"s come at 24 and 35 seconds.