CLEVELAND — Calling Cleveland Cavaliers games in Spanish is how Rafael Hernández-Brito said he spends his time during the NBA season.
“I’m the bilingual broadcaster,” Hernández-Brito said.
His reports reach Cleveland’s highly diverse Hispanic community.
“We are alive, we are vibrant,” Hernández-Brito said.
Originally immigrating from El Salvador, Hernández-Brito is celebrating his 25th anniversary as a sports broadcaster.
“I was a successful salesperson, I would like to say, for a brewery in the U.S. and then, you know, decided to follow my passion,” Hernández-Brito said.
Now in his ninth season with the Cavaliers, he recalled major moments on his resume, like when he received a team ring after Cleveland won the 2016 NBA Finals.
“I keep mine in a very safe location. I rarely wear it because it’s really big,” Hernández-Brito said.
Working for a variety of teams in his time like the New York Jets and the Cleveland Browns, Hernández-Brito said he looks up to sportscasters who he thinks can do it all, like Jim Nantz.
“He does the Super Bowl, the Masters and the Final Four, the college basketball final. So I have done the Super Bowl and the finals in college basketball. I’ve never done the Masters, so that’s the only thing I don’t have,” Hernández-Brito said. “But I always like him and Bob Costas. They weren’t just one sport personality [sic].”
However, he admitted that he ultimately owes his success to his family.
“I’m the youngest one of four,” Hernández-Brito said. “So, I always think my brother, Carlos, is the one that paved the way for me and made everything so much easier, and not only gave me the example of following my passion and working hard for everything.”
The Spanish voice of the Cavaliers gave this advice to those who might follow in his footsteps.
“Find that something that you would do for free and make a living doing it. Then you’ll never work a day in your life,” Hernández-Brito said.
Hernández-Brito can be heard with the Cavs again this year when the season begins in October.
