Joe Tait, a longtime broadcaster in Cleveland who was the voice of the Cavaliers for four decades, died on Wednesday. He was 83 years old. Tait was battling kidney disease and liver cancer and had recently gone into hospice.
“A friend and mentor to many over the years, Joe Tait wasn’t just a member of the Cavaliers family; he was a part of the Cavs story like no one else and his voice and unique, candid perspective reverberates throughout the team’s history,” the Cavaliers said in a statement. “He will be dearly missed.”
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Tait was with the Cavaliers when the team began playing in 1970. He remained with the team until his retirement in 2011. Tait called over 3,000 games, and the Cavaliers honored him with a commemorative banner that hangs alongside some of the team’s retired jerseys at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
“A dedicated husband and father – generous with his talent and spirit – Joe received every major sports broadcasting award there is over the course of his career in Northeast Ohio,” the statement said. “Joe was also famous for his dry wit and his pragmatic view of life and probably wouldn’t have wanted a big, sentimental sendoff. So, to paraphrase the legend, himself – Let’s not say: ‘goodbye.’ Let’s just say: “Have a GOOD night, everybody!’”
Tait saw experienced his share of bad seasons with the Cavaliers but also was there for the good, specifically when LeBron James was there for the first time. Tait called the 2007 NBA Finals when James led the Cavaliers to the championship series, the first in franchise history.
“Rest In Paradise my friend!!” James wrote on Twitter when he learned the news. “You’ll be extremely missed here!” Along with being the voice of the Cavalier, Tait did radio and TV play-by-play for the Cleveland Indians for 16 seasons. He also called games for WNBA’s Cleveland Rockers, Cleveland Crusaders hockey and Mount Union Football who have won 13 national championships.
“Thank you, Joe, for the decades of joy you have brought Cleveland sports fans,” the Indians said in a post. Tait was born in Evanston, Illinois. He started his radio career at Monmouth College (Illinois) and also severed in the Army for three years. Tait is a member of the media wing of the Naismith Hall of Fame.
