BEFORE HE became the voice of the Indiana Pacers, play-by-play announcer Chris Denari was known as “The Music Man.”
As a student at Wabash College, Denari played basketball for the Little Giants. “I was a valuable reserve,” he recalls.
During the team’s 1981–82 NCAA Division III Championship season his junior year, he served as the DJ for the team on bus rides and for pregame shootarounds.
“I had a big silver boom box, and we listened to music like The Gap Band and The J. Geils Band. ‘Take Your Time (Do it Right)’ and ‘Freeze-Frame’ were songs that we’d listen to. I thought it was cool that head coach Mac Petty allowed us to listen to music during the shootaround,” he says.
“It means a lot to be recognized by your peers. You look around, and Don Fischer [the voice of the IU men’s basketball and football] has been dominant. It does mean a lot.”
Denari also won the award in 2022. Throughout a tenure that has spanned decades, he’s called games for nearly every team and event in Indianapolis. His passion began as a boy with a card game and a tape recorder.
“At 10 or 12, I would play a card game [Strat-O-Matic Basketball] and do play-by-play into the recorder. I would call the game, and my brother Tom would do the commercials. Jump to 50 years later, I’m announcing games, and he owns an advertising agency. It’s funny how it all worked out,” he says.
Growing up in Dayton, Ohio, Denari remembers playing Wiffle ball in his backyard, listening to the Indy 500. He never dreamed he would be a part of that event. However, for 20 years, he was the radio voice of Turn 4 for the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
“The first time I called the race in Turn 4 was a full circle moment for me, and I remembered those days in Ohio,” Denari says.
Last year, Denari retired from announcing the 500.
His father, Bob, was a high school basketball coach. When the family moved to Westfield, Denari played for him, which was a special time in his sports career.
“Being the coach’s kid, you’d better be really good or not so good. In my first game, I scored 20. There really wasn’t a problem after that,” he recalls.
Denari says he is not ready to retire. “I’ve done it for 20 years and still have some good years ahead of me. I still enjoy announcing, and last year, being a part of the Pacers’ run was special. I still have a pretty good fastball, so I think I can still contribute to the team.”
It’s that team aspect that drives him.
“I just like being a part of a group. I like being affiliated with a team and bringing that message to the fans and viewers. You owe it to the people watching to do your best because you never know if it may be their first time watching,” he says.
“The winning is great, and the losing sucks, but you are with them [the Pacers]. It’s not just doing the games. It’s more,” he says. “If that’s all you are doing, you’re not doing your job. I love being a representative of the Pacers everywhere I go. Even when I am picking up food, fans want to talk about their team.”
The Pacers next season? Denari says no time to panic. “We [the Pacers] get healthy; we will be competitive. But I must say this year, the fans have been great. Nearly every game has sold out.”
For a kid who sat on his bedroom floor dreaming about this life, it became true.