Jim Petersen has no trouble rattling off the games he has missed in 26 years as the television color analyst for the . That’s because there are so few of them. He missed one in 1999 to be with his father, who was diagnosed with cancer. Petersen missed one in 2010 when he had a heart attack. And he missed one in 2017 to watch his son, Sanjay, play for Northwestern against Gonzaga in the NCAA Tournament. That’s it. That’s the list.
“I told him you just have to take the same attitude you took toward fighting whatever we had to fight to get through to still be here today.” At the time of his diagnosis, Petersen and his wife, Tika, were preparing to join the Timberwolves on their preseason trip to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Bally’s did not broadcast either game, but the couple was looking forward to accompanying the team on what promised to be a memorable experience.