Jordan-Era Announcer Turns Back Time for 2012-13 Chicago Bulls

You may not have known him by name, but you definitely knew who Ray Clay was if you were an NBA fan growing up in the '90s. He was the golden voice behind the PA microphone for the Chicago Bulls, and you knew it was party time whenever the lights went out in Chicago.

You see, the man made announcing the starting lineups an art form, and the whole world now knows thanks to a video of the 1997 Bulls lineup going viral.

Unfortunately, Clay was fired by the Bulls in 2002, and for a ridiculously petty reason. Jordan was set to return to Chicago as a member of the Washington Wizards, and Clay wanted to give the man his signature introduction. Team management said no, and cut Clay loose at the end of that season.

This is the worst kind of injustice, as Clay is to Chicago what Bob Sheppard was to New York. He currently calls games for the WNBA's Chicago Sky, and also has a side business doing weddings, bar mitzvahs, etc., but this voice deserves to be back at Bulls games now that the new generation of players is among us.

Fortunately, another viral video of Clay has emerged. This time, he announces the lineup of today's generation of Bulls, from Derrick Rose to Joakim Noah. It's not the same, given how a certain Number 23 is absent, but still awesome.

Thus, it's time for Bulls management to let bygones be bygones and bring Clay back. The Bulls have been playing great basketball as of late, and it's time for them to have an equally great voice singing their praises over the PA system.

That may just be enough to give them an extra push, and definitely bring Chicago closer to being Titletown, USA once again.