The Bucks' playoff series has shown off Milwaukee is so many ways already. And for TNT announcer Ernie Johnson, who was born in Milwaukee, it brought him back to his childhood home. Johnson, whose father played for the Milwaukee Braves back in the 1950s until 1964, lived in the city's Enderis Park neighborhood and has fond memories of the house. How fond? Check out his emotions as he gets to go back and visit that very house, where the neighbors - including some neighbors he lived next door to as a kid - welcomed him back and the current owners of his former house gave him a tour.
The video, which aired on TNT Friday night, starts with Charles Barkley and Shaq thanking people and places and goofing around a bit, and it gets to Ernie's story about two minutes in. (Not that there aren't some funny quips before that, by the way.) And kudos to Shaq and Barkley for giving a shout-out to Mr. Perkins Restaurant, even though they shortened it to "Perkins," probably making some people wonder how the heck Charles Barkley could eat oxtail at a Perkins. This particular Mr. Perkins, though, is a classic and delicious soul food restaurant at 20th & Atkinson, near Capitol Drive, on Milwaukee's North Side.
Anyway, Ernie's homecoming ends up rather touching. Videos of him as a kid in and around that same house, shot between 1956 and 1964 in color (baseball players made relatively good money back then, too), add to his nostalgia. All in all, it was pretty cool.
Also cool that the Bucks dominated Toronto in Game 2 as well, smacking the Raptors 125-103. They're now off to Toronto for Game 3 Sunday night!