I love Van Gundy's manufactured personality... My bet is that the network approached him with a request to add some flavor or get moved to the halftime analysis team. Boy, did he respond in a big way...

AA --- you're completely nuts. JVG is insanely distracting. He's like the kid in the back of a fifth grade classroom that needs constant attention. Ironically, he's alot like so many sportswriters on TV -- megaolmanical,full of crap, full of themselves and catalysts for wanting to throw a brick through your set.
And he can take Breen and Jackson with him. A horrible, horrible team.

I cannot stand it when Van Gundy goes on one of his rants about changing a current NBA rule.

The guy was a good coach but he is a horrible announcer. I'd rather listen to Bill Walton over Van Gundy.

JVG is a great announcer. Easily my favorite in recent memory. His basketball iq shows when needed. Comedy shows when needed. Brings the buddy feel to the fans. Normal fans themselves do not talk about basketball 100% during the game at home. JVG is Charles Barkley during the telecast. Bill Walton is a hack of an announcer. I first hated him for his absolute statements. Back-off his absurd sweeping remarks and take him for what he is. Dead pan comedy with zero credibility as a serious announcer. At least JVG's rule proposals are interesting,smart and feasable. ie expanding allstar rosters to 15. GREAT IDEA!!!!

JVG is, as Marc says, the Sir Charles of announcing. As said, if you have a group of friends at a house watching the game, the talk isn't continuously about the game. JVG has a wonderfully dry sense of humor, there really isn't much he won't talk about, and he doesn't mind playing the butt of jokes. And it's obvious that in truth he respects Mark Jackson a lot and that Jackson has a lot of respect for him. Anonymous - I'm not sure what you mean about the 5th grader in the back of the room who needs constant attention. 5th graders who need attention are not nearly that funny and they are a great deal more annoying. I know that as a teacher. I was at the point, during hte season, when, on Sundays I was hoping earnestly that it'd be the Breen, Jackson, JVG team and not (though I like Hubie a lot) Hubie and Tirico. Breen has loosened up a tiny bit which is good and Mark is a very sensible, credible, good-natured commentator.

Jeff Van Gundy is an amazing genius. His childhood obesity rant is brilliant in any context.

What I like about JVG is that he's willing to call out egregiously bad reffing. It seems other analysts/commentators/play-by-play guys are terrified of waking up one morning with a horse head in their bed, courtesy David Stern.

JVG has been through that, and no longer fears it. It's refreshing when a broadcaster actually has the balls to rag on an official for calling a phantom foul against Kobe Bryant.