Overview

Doris Burke (born Doris Sable on January 4, 1965) is an American sports announcer and analyst for NBA on ESPN and ABC games [3]. She is a Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame broadcaster [2]. Burke was the first woman to serve as a television analyst for any major American men’s sports championship event when she called the NBA Finals on ABC in 2024 [2]. She also made history in 2020 as the first woman to serve as a game analyst for the NBA Finals on any platform [2]. A former basketball standout at Providence College, where she finished as the school’s all-time leader in assists [2, 3]. Burke began her broadcasting career in 1990 and has been with ESPN since 1991 [3]. She has also worked as an analyst for WNBA games and New York Knicks games, becoming the first female commentator to call a Knicks game on radio and television [3]. She has also lent her voice to the NBA 2K video game series [9].

ESPN/ABC

Lead NBA Analyst

What Is Doris Burke Net Worth?

As of 2025, Doris Burke, the celebrated American sportscaster, has an estimated net worth of $4 million [4, 9, 20]. This valuation is primarily attributed to her successful career as a television analyst for NBA games on ESPN and ABC [2, 9]. Burke’s journey to becoming a prominent figure in sports broadcasting is marked by her pioneering achievements and consistent dedication to the sport [4, 5, 22].

Early Life and Career Beginnings

Doris Burke (née Sable) was born on January 4, 1965, in West Islip, New York [2, 14, 18]. At the age of seven, her family relocated to Manasquan, New Jersey, where she spent her childhood as the youngest of eight children [2, 4, 8, 14]. Burke’s passion for basketball ignited in second grade, setting the stage for her future endeavors in the sport [2, 4, 14]. Her early basketball idols included Kyle Macy, Kelly Tripucka, and Tom Heinsohn [2]. During her high school years at Manasquan High School, Burke excelled as a point guard, attracting recruitment interest from several colleges in the eastern region [2, 14].

Burke’s broadcasting career commenced in 1990, where she served as an analyst for women’s basketball games at her alma mater on the radio [2, 3, 14]. Simultaneously, she took on a similar role for Big East women’s games on television [2, 3]. By 1996, she expanded her repertoire to include Big East men’s games [2, 3]. Her association with ESPN began in 1991, marking the start of a long and impactful career with the network [2, 3, 8, 11].

College Basketball Career at Providence College

Doris Burke attended Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island, where she played point guard for the Providence Friars women’s basketball team for four years [2, 12]. Throughout her college career, Burke maintained an impressive average of 12.1 points and 5.3 assists per game [11, 12, 17]. By the time she graduated, she had amassed a total of 1,372 points and 602 assists [11, 17]. In her freshman year, she earned a spot on the Big East All-Rookie Team [11, 17].

During her junior year (1985-86), Burke was honored with a Second Team All-Big East selection, contributing to Providence’s successful 24-6 season, which included a 14-2 conference record [17]. That season, she helped lead Providence to its first-ever NCAA Tournament berth [17]. As a senior in 1987, she achieved First Team All-Big East honors, with Providence posting a 23-9 record and a 12-4 conference record [2, 17]. That same year, Burke was named the college’s Co-Female Athlete of the Year and earned All-American distinction [2]. Burke left Providence as its all-time leader in assists with 602 and as of 2012 was still second in that career category [2]. She was later inducted into the Providence College Hall of Fame in 1999 [2]. Doris Burke was a three-time All-BIG EAST selection and was named a District I All-American, and currently ranks second all-time in career assists with 602 [8].

Burke earned a bachelor’s degree in health service administration/social work and later a master’s degree in education from Providence College [2, 3]. In 2005, she received an honorary doctorate from the school [3, 4].

Pioneering Broadcasting Career

Doris Burke’s career is filled with numerous groundbreaking achievements. In 2000, she became the first woman to serve as a commentator for a New York Knicks game on both radio and television [2, 3, 8, 11, 31]. She also holds the distinction of being the first woman to commentate on a Big East men’s game and to be the primary commentator on a men’s college basketball conference package [2, 3]. From 2009 to 2019, Burke served as a sideline reporter for the NBA Finals on ABC [2, 5]. In 2017, Burke became a regular NBA game analyst for ESPN, making her the first woman at the national level to be assigned a full regular-season role [2, 4, 6, 15]. In 2020, Burke began calling the Conference Finals and the NBA Finals on ESPN Radio, making her the first woman to call the conference finals and NBA Finals on radio [2, 6]. In 2024, Burke became the first woman to serve as a game analyst on television for a championship final in one of the four major North American professional men’s sports leagues [2, 3, 11].

Burke’s broadcast roles have included work as a WNBA analyst for the New York Liberty on MSG Network, as well as a women’s college basketball analyst for CBS Sports (1998-2001) and Westwood One Radio (2000-02) [3]. She also spent three years as a women’s basketball analyst with the Penn State Television Network (1993-95) [3]. She served as a play-by-play commentator for Providence College women’s basketball on WICE/WNPW Radio (1990-97) and Providence College men’s basketball with WPRO Radio (1992-95) [3]. Burke has been a frequent columnist for Basketball Times Magazine and Eastern Basketball Magazine since 2001 and a contributing writer on the website for the Center for Sports Parenting [3].

Doris Burke has also made appearances in the virtual world, featuring as a sideline reporter in 2K Sports’s NBA 2K series since NBA 2K11 [2, 4, 14, 15].

Most recently, Burke signed a multiyear extension with ESPN to cover the NBA [4, 5, 24, 26, 28]. According to Yahoo! Sports, ESPN promised that the veteran analyst will be involved in several “high-profile” games throughout the upcoming regular seasons and playoffs [4]. Burke is now on the “A-Team” for ESPN’s broadcasts along with Mike Breen [4].

Accolades and Recognition

Doris Burke’s contributions to basketball have earned her numerous awards and honors. She was inducted into the Providence College Hall of Fame in 1999 [2, 3, 14, 17, 26]. In 2003, she received the USA Today Rudy Award as the Best New Face in Sports Television [2, 3]. In 2004, she was inducted into the Institute for International Sport’s Scholar Athlete Hall of Fame [2, 3]. In 2006, she was inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame [2]. The Basketball Hall of Fame selected Burke for the 2018 Curt Gowdy Media Award [2, 3, 6, 26, 30]. In 2017, she received the WISE Women of the Year Award [3]. Burke has also received an honorary doctorate from Providence College [3, 4].

Doris Burke’s Salary

Doris Burke’s annual salary from ESPN is reportedly $1 million, significantly contributing to her $4 million net worth [5, 7, 16, 23, 31]. However, some sources estimate her annual income ranges from $400,000 to $1 million [15]. Her multiyear contract extension with ESPN in 2022 solidifies her position as a key figure in NBA coverage for the network [2, 4, 5, 24, 26, 28].

Personal Life

Doris Burke was married to Gregg Burke, who also works in athletics [2, 5, 14]. They divorced in 2012 and have two children: a son named Matthew and a daughter named Sarah [2, 5, 13, 14]. She is also a grandmother [5]. In her free time, Burke enjoys playing golf with friends and her son [8].

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