PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — If you’ve gone to a Sixers game any time in the last 28 years, you’ve heard Matt Cord’s voice reverberate throughout the arena (whatever it may have been called at the time). After this season, he’s hanging up his mic.
“I love the job. It’s like living out a childhood dream,” said Cord.
After nearly three decades of announcing starting lineups and made baskets, he didn’t want that dream to turn sour. A recent conversation with former Sixers play-by-play announcer Marc Zumoff — who retired after the 2021 season — helped inform his own decision to step aside.
“And I’m like, ‘You know what, Zu? You went out on top. You’re still really good. Like, you could go anywhere, any team, and still be a great play-by-play announcer. That’s the way to do it.’ I said to myself, that’s what I want to do.”
Growing up idolizing Dr. J, Cord has relished the chance to hype up crowds for greats like Allen Iverson, Joel Embiid and other legends. He had a rare chance to gas up an opponent, Kobe Bryant, during the icon’s last game in his native Philadelphia. He also announced Michael Jordan’s final game as a player, when he was with the Wizards.
Cord will continue DJing at WMMR, where he’s taken over the midday show for the late Pierre Robert.
“A lot of times I just find myself saying, ‘OK, what would Pierre do here?’ And I just try to honor him every day when I walk into that studio named after him.”
Above all, Cord said he is grateful for nearly three decades behind the mic.
“The fans are the best. There’s no doubt about it. I’ve traveled to all the arenas in the NBA, and it’s not even close,” he boasted. “Thank you for letting me be part of your lives. It’s been an honor. I’ve been blessed just to grab that microphone.”