Requiem For Voices: Appreciating Chris Marlowe, Scott Hastings, and Chris Dempsey
On Altitude's decisions to move on to a new era
KSE had a bloodbath yesterday, with the headline being that they will not bring back Chris Marlowe, Scott Hastings, or Chris Dempsey on the Altitude broadcast next season. Hastings will continue with Altitude radio.
I have a sneaking suspicion it won’t be the last we hear about KSE cuts internally. For an organization with their level of success, they are also looking for ways to make the business leaner. If you’re business-oriented, this approach is admirable. If you’re a fan- and community-oriented person, it sucks.
For me, I’m just going to miss seeing Chris, Scott, and Dempsey at the games.
Chris Dempsey was one of the first people I met in the media room. Chris has been there for so much shit. George Karl tearing into players with reporters. The Brian Shaw era. The entire Jokic arc.
Chris worked at the Post and handled so many different beats. He knows and understands Colorado sports. He’s someone who has genuinely invested himself in the sports community here in Colorado from Colorado State down to the Springs.
The comments from the Nuggets media community all mention the same thing about Chris: that he always has a smile on his face. Chris ALWAYS makes you feel like he’s so happy to see you, you specifically.
He always balances the smart, nuanced nature of his thinking with genuine curiosity. He listens when you speak, and if he disagrees, he’ll tell you, but he’s always moving the conversation in an interesting direction.
When he joined Altitude, it was a shock for me, having seen him be such a hardcore beat reporter, but it was such a great opportunity for him as a young father, getting to spend more time with his son.
Since then, he’s become part of the family that people let into their homes on a nightly basis (when KSE isn’t feuding in a losing battle with the local cable company that deprives fans of seeing the primes of two literal MVP players in two different sports).
Wherever Chris goes next, he’ll be successful and liked, because he’s a likable and successful person.
Scott Hastings brooks no bullshit. You can agree or disagree with Scott across a great many things, and I do, but he’s always treated with me respect and I’m incredibly fond of the man.
More than anything, Scott has held as a link to Nuggets history. It’s important to have guys who know what the league was like, how it’s changed, and the key moments that have told a franchise’s history. Losing Scott means losing that.
Scotty was always exceptionally kind to me despite us being very different people who come from very different backgrounds and different ages.1
He’d ask me what I thought of certain games or sequences, and he and I were always on the same page when we knew things were especially good or bad with the team.
Being on a beat2 brings a sense of how things are with the team.
It’s often nebulous; are they really in a funk, or did they just have a bad plane ride or a locker room argument? Do these guys really dislike each other, or are they just on each other’s nerves?
Scott always had great insights into how the team’s mood was, because Scott knew what it was like to be in the locker room. A former player carries that brotherhood that all players respect.
Scott was also always willing to criticize when the effort wasn’t there. He has a real understanding of what the fans deserve, and he stands up for the fans.
You might get a more detailed analysis, but you’re not going to have Scott’s alternating, grouchy, and delighted tone, and that’s a shame.
Chris Marlowe is a pro’s pro. His career began well before his Nuggets tenure, and will continue well after. He’s covered the biggest sporting events in the world.
For as long as Chris has been with the team, he’s also The Voice of the Jokic era in Denver.
“He GOT ittttttt”
“YES!”
“Jokic AGAIN”
He’s got iconic calls that fans will remember forever. He has the “Big Tipper” nickname.
Chris had a great rhythm to his Nuggets calls. He knew when to hype it up and show urgency and how to fill the dead spots that happen in every NBA game. Chris Marlowe never looked, acted, or called games like there was anywhere else on earth he’d rather be than in people’s homes calling this team’s games.
These announcers are more than just soundtracks. They form the tapestry that makes up “watching your favorite team.” You spend your weeknights after work with them. You tell your kids you’ll be there in a minute to hear them call the end of the game. You rage with them on the postgame shows and exalt with them in big moments.
We are always being caught in the post-capitalist vortex, driving everything towards cost efficiency and profit margin while losing the things that bring comfort and joy to our time in this machine.
Chris Marlowe will always be a Denver legend, but as for me, I’ll miss his inquisitive nature about why certain teams or coaches do certain things, his wry humor, and the way he lifted the media room by walking in with a suit that cost more than my car.
I think it’s great that Altitude has retained Katy Winge. She’s becoming an absolute icon and there’s starting to be some recognition from those above her that she really does carry the value and recognition from not just media members but national fans of how enjoyable she is on commentary.
I’m hopeful they recognize the mistake of moving her off color commentary next year and feature her in a broader role.
I’m hopeful that other on-air and behind-the-scenes KSE fixtures will be retained, but I’m also cynical in that regard.
I’m hopeful that the next era of Nuggets broadcasts will bring invigoration and a freshness that the press release says KSE is pursuing.
But I will miss what we had in this era, and I’ll miss some good people to talk to while we wait for tall people to answer our questions.
Scott and I also don’t agree politically, though I’ve never been in Scott’s presence when it’s been discussed, either. Time and place, etc.
Note: only the home games, which is why local coverage is so important and you should subscribe to the Denver Post and Denver Gazzette to support Bennett Durando and Vinny Benedetto who attend most road games.