Stacey King, Bulls champion and beloved broadcaster, dies at 59

CHICAGO, June 8, 2026. The Chicago Bulls announced Sunday that Stacey King, a three-time NBA champion with the franchise and one of the NBA’s best-known broadcasters, died at age 59. The team said it notified by a family member and did not provide a cause of death. The NBA also released a statement mourning the loss, calling King a longtime Bulls television analyst whose passion and energy resonated with fans for more than two decades.

King arrived in Chicago as a player who carried a rare combination of size and basketball IQ, but his lasting imprint on the Bulls came from what he represented during the franchise’s most historic run. The Bulls drafted the 6-foot-11 forward/center out of Oklahoma with the sixth overall pick in the 1989 NBA Draft, and he played five seasons with the team. During that span, King averaged 6.6 points and 3.3 rebounds, and he was part of the Bulls’ three consecutive championship teams from 1991 to 1993.

After his Bulls playing career, King spent time in several NBA markets, finishing with eight total seasons in the league and career averages of 6.4 points and 3.3 rebounds. Still, his connection to Chicago never loosened, and it eventually deepened in the one role that put his personality in nearly every living room that watched the Bulls. King returned to the organization’s broadcast team in 2006, initially as a studio analyst, before becoming the color commentator in 2008, a position he held for years as an Emmy-winning broadcaster.

On the air, King translated his on-court experience into a broadcast style built on candor, humor, and fast understanding of what a possession was really asking from the players. Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf described King as “a cherished member of the Bulls family” whose voice helped bring Bulls basketball into homes across generations. Bulls president and CEO Michael Reinsdorf similarly emphasized how King made games feel personal, describing the way his love for the sport carried through every interaction, whether it was a conversation, a broadcast moment, or a photo with a fan.

King’s craft also fit the modern Bulls brand: former players who can explain the game without losing the emotional thread of it. The NBA’s statement framed him as someone who made his mark as a player, coach, and commentator, and said his unmistakable energy resonated with generations of fans. A detail that captured his approach came from King’s own words on his “Gimme the Hot Sauce” podcast last month, when he said the job “never seems like work,” describing the experience as something he treated as fun regardless of the result.

For the Bulls, the next step is obvious but not simple: the broadcast booth has to go on, and viewers will immediately feel the absence of a voice that for many years served as a guide through every offensive surge and defensive stand. There are no immediate roster-style implications for the team’s standings tied to this kind of change, but it does affect one of the most consistent touchpoints the franchise has with its fan base during the offseason and throughout the regular season.

In a league where games are often experienced through highlights and quick clips, King built a slower, steadier form of fandom memory. His legacy will likely show up in archived calls, in the nickname vocabulary he used during big moments, and in the way Bulls fans remember specific plays with his tone attached. As tributes continue to come in from across the NBA, the question for Bulls audiences will be how quickly they can adjust to a broadcast identity that once depended, in large part, on King’s voice.

Information in this article comes from the Bulls and NBA announcements and reporting that they did not disclose a cause of death.