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The Thickly Accented American Behind the N.B.A. in France

A pack of Knicks fans from France attended a recent game at Madison Square Garden. When a player for the Denver Nuggets shot an air ball, one of them reflexively shouted in French, “Oh là là! Mettez vos casques!”

The expression — loose translation: “Oh, my! Put on your helmets!” — and the broad American accent he put on triggered rounds of knowing laughter among his friends in the stands.

It was a nod to George Eddy, an American-born sportscaster with little resonance outside France but perhaps the man most responsible for introducing the country to the N.