You're stuck on I-90. The lake effect snow is starting to blur the taillights in front of you, and the tension of a tight fourth quarter is making your grip on the steering wheel just a little too tight. You reach for the dial. You don't want a podcast or a delayed stream. You want the crackle. You want that immediate, gritty, raw feed of a ball hitting the hardwood and the roar of the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse crowd. This is where Cleveland Cavaliers AM radio lives. It’s a Northeast Ohio institution that defies the logic of the "all-digital" era.
Honestly, it feels like everything is moving to apps, but for a massive chunk of the Cavs fan base, the AM band is still king. It's about reliability. If you're driving through the dead zones of Geauga County or navigating the outskirts of Akron, your 5G might drop, but 1100 AM is usually screaming through the speakers.
The Powerhouse Behind the Broadcast
For decades, the heart of the operation has been WTAM 1100. It’s a "clear channel" station. That's a technical term, basically meaning it has a massive 50,000-watt signal that can reach across state lines and even over the border into Canada once the sun goes down. When you tune into Cleveland Cavaliers AM radio, you aren't just listening to a local broadcast; you’re tapping into a signal that has carried the voices of Joe Tait and now Tim Alcorn across the Midwest.
Tim Alcorn and Jim Chones bring a specific kind of energy. It’s conversational. It feels like sitting at a bar in Lakewood. Chones, a legend from the "Miracle of Richfield" era, provides that deep, analytical "big man" perspective that you just can't get from a national TV broadcast. He knows the footwork. He knows the psychology of the paint.
But why stay on AM?
Some people think it’s just nostalgia. It’s not. It’s about latency. If you’ve ever tried to watch a game on a streaming app while listening to the radio, you know the pain of the 30-second delay. You hear the neighbor scream because Donovan Mitchell hit a step-back three, but on your phone, he hasn't even crossed half-court yet. AM radio is near-instant. It is the fastest way to get the information from the floor to your brain.
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Navigating the Cavaliers Radio Network
It isn't just WTAM, though. The Cleveland Cavaliers AM radio network is a sprawling web of affiliates. Because Ohio is a mix of dense urban centers and vast rural stretches, the team has to farm out the signal to dozens of smaller stations to ensure coverage.
- WMMS 100.7 FM often carries the games too, providing that crisp FM sound for those in the immediate metro area.
- WAKR 1590 AM in Akron serves the Summit County faithful.
- WDBZ 1230 AM has historically helped cover the southern reaches toward Cincinnati.
- Stations in Youngstown, Canton, and even Toledo pick up the feed.
The complexity of these contracts is wild. Each station has its own local ads, its own pre-game quirks, and its own signal strength issues. Sometimes you’re listening to a crystal-clear feed, and five miles later, you’re fighting through static from a station in Fort Wayne. It's part of the charm. It’s the "radio scavenger hunt" that every long-distance Cavs fan knows by heart.
The Ghost of Joe Tait
You cannot talk about the Cavs on the radio without talking about Joe Tait. He was the voice. For 39 seasons, he wasn't just announcing; he was painting. He famously refused to watch a monitor, preferring to describe exactly what his eyes saw on the court. His "Wham with a right hand!" catchphrase is etched into the DNA of the city.
Tait understood the medium of AM radio better than anyone. He knew that the listener was often doing something else—driving, working in the garage, painting a room. He provided the score and the time remaining every few minutes because he knew someone might have just tuned in. Modern broadcasters sometimes forget that. They get caught up in the "flow" and forget that a radio listener is blind. Alcorn has done a phenomenal job stepping into those massive shoes, maintaining that "theatre of the mind" style that Tait perfected.
Dealing With the "Digital Drift"
Is AM radio dying? People have been saying that since the 90s. Yet, here we are. The Cleveland Cavaliers recently renewed and strengthened their ties with iHeartMedia, the parent company of WTAM and WMMS. They recognize that while the iHeartRadio app is great for fans in California or Europe, the local fans still want that terrestrial signal.
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The technical reality is that AM signals carry further than FM signals, especially during the day. They bounce off the ionosphere at night. This "skywave" propagation is why a kid in North Carolina can sometimes catch a Cavs game on a clear night if the atmospheric conditions are just right. You can't do that with a standard FM transmitter.
There's also the "emergency" factor. In a world of cybersecurity threats and infrastructure failures, a battery-powered AM radio is the most reliable piece of tech you own. The Cavs organization knows this. Keeping the game on the AM dial is a service to the community, ensuring that even if the internet goes down, the Wine and Gold are still audible.
Why the Audio Experience Beats the TV Broadcast
I’ll say it: listening to the Cavs is often better than watching them. On TV, you’re at the mercy of the camera director. You see what they want you to see. On Cleveland Cavaliers AM radio, the announcers give you the "off-ball" stories. They tell you about J.B. Bickerstaff (or whoever is prowling the sidelines) losing his mind at a ref while the TV is showing a replay of a layup.
They describe the body language. They tell you that Evan Mobley looks winded or that Darius Garland is adjusting his jersey in a way that suggests his shoulder is bothering him. It’s a deeper level of intimacy. You’re in the ear of the expert.
Common Misconceptions About Local Blackouts
A lot of fans get frustrated with blackouts on streaming services like Bally Sports (or whatever the regional sports network is called this week). They think the radio is blacked out too.
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It almost never is.
If you are within the broadcast territory, you can almost always find the game on a local AM station for free. No subscription required. No "device not supported" errors. Just a piece of wire and a speaker. It is the most democratic way to follow the team.
Actionable Steps for the Modern Cavs Radio Listener
If you want to maximize your experience with the Cleveland Cavaliers AM radio network, stop relying on your car's "auto-scan" and take these steps:
- Map Your Dead Zones: If you commute through Northeast Ohio, identify where WTAM 1100 starts to fade. Usually, you can flip to 100.7 FM or a local affiliate like 1590 AM in Akron to bridge the gap.
- Invest in a "Super Radio": If you live on the fringes of the broadcast area (like Erie, PA or Columbus), look into a C. Crane CC Radio. These are specifically designed for long-range AM reception and can pull in WTAM when a standard clock radio just gives you static.
- Sync the Audio: If you hate the TV announcers but want to see the game, use a delay-capable radio app or a hardware delay box. You can pause the radio feed for a few seconds to perfectly match the TV image, giving you the best of both worlds.
- Check the Night Signal: Remember that AM signals change at sunset. Some smaller affiliates have to power down or change their directional pattern at night. If your local station disappears at 6:00 PM, flip over to the 50,000-watt big dogs like 1100 AM.
- Use the iHeart App as a Backup: If you’re inside a "faraday cage" building with a lot of steel and concrete, your AM reception will suck. Use the iHeartRadio app on your phone, but keep the terrestrial radio ready for when you leave the building.
The crackle of the AM dial isn't a bug; it's a feature. It’s the sound of Cleveland basketball history, and as long as the Cavs are hitting the floor, that signal will be cutting through the Ohio air.