In 1972, a seven-year-old Doris Burke (then Doris Sable) moved with her family into a small home on the Jersey Shore so her father could have a shorter commute to work. Waiting there for her was a left-behind basketball and a nearby court. It’s not often that someone discovers their career at such an early age, but picking up that basketball was a pivotal moment: the game has been her life ever since.
She spent much of her childhood on that nearby court, learning to play and honing her skills. Burke grew up with the game, playing as a point guard at Manasquan High School, and was recruited by Providence College, playing point guard for four years for the Providence Friars women’s basketball team. She graduated with a degree in health service administration/social work and as the school’s all-time leader in assists. Her involvement with the sport continued when she began her broadcasting career in 1990, serving as an analyst for Providence College women’s games on the radio and moving into television work for the Big East Women’s games.
Burke has always considered herself to be a student of basketball, even off the court. Her constant exposure to the sport has left her with a well-honed ability to interview players in often hectic and emotional circumstances. Speaking of her continual observations, she said, “I feel like every repetition, every game, every practice that I’m allowed to watch, I’m picking up some small piece of information, a nuance about the game or a coach’s philosophy. I’m in a constant state of education.”
Her attention to the sport has resulted in her achieving a number of historic firsts: shortly after her broadcast career began, she became the first woman to be a commentator for a Big East men’s game and in 2000 became the first woman to cover a New York Knicks game on radio and television. In 2003 she began working the sidelines for ESPN and ABC’s coverage of NBA games, and since 2009 has been the sideline reporter for ABC Sports for the NBA Finals. In 2013 she debuted on the pregame show ‘NBA Countdown’ and in 2017 became the first woman at the national level to be assigned a full-season role serving as an analyst for NBA games for ESPN.
Years of work and practice have gotten Burke to where she is today, and she hopes that young women in sports can look to her as proof that they can achieve their own goals. “I want girls to dream big and to think that there is nothing that is impossible,” she said.