LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — The bright lights are shining on the court, the players have been introduced and Nuggets' public address announcer Kyle Speller is screaming "LET'S GO!" at the top of his lungs before tip-off of the conference championship.
But he's not hyping up his home team.
Tuesday night, Speller will be the Boston Celtics' home PA announcer for Game 1 of their Eastern Conference Finals showdown with the Miami Heat.
Speller, from Denver, is one of four announcers the NBA brought to Orlando for the league's bubble, the isolated area where teams live, work and play to prevent a COVID-19 outbreak. Speller is also one of two PA guys who will be staying through the duration of the restarted season.
"I want to make every home team feel like they're at home as best as I can and show them as much love and everything else and support and encouragement as I can," Speller said via Zoom from his hotel room at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort.
Speller found out he was selected ahead of the league's July 30 restart and cleared the business trip with his family.
He's missed his twin sons' high school graduation and couldn't see them off to college.
But they understand, and he says he's blessed to have this opportunity.
"God has blessed me to be able to do this, he's blessed me with a voice to be able to share. I try to do everything for an audience of one and I don't ever want to take it for granted," he said.
Speller has been the Denver Nuggets PA announcer for 15 years but prides himself on his flexibility. He and his colleagues learned the nuances of each team during rehearsals and practice scrimmages.
"Each team was different, but we were able to meet and some teams had some nicknames they were asking if we could sprinkle in from time to time and I loved that," he said.
The NBA split up the games so that he didn't have to announce against the Nuggets. Since the playoffs have started, Speller has been the team's home announcer for all but one game.
"We all connect kind of before the game, and they know that I'm there," he said. "And if I can't connect with them personally sometimes they'll kind of tap the glass and give me a pound on the glass, as well."
Speller is staying in the bubble through the NBA finals. He hopes the Nuggets can do the same, and make Orlando feel a little bit more like home.
"I'm loving it," he said. "I'm all in and I believe, I just believe we can get it done."
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