Last month, Jacob "Strong Oak" Tobey had one of his lifelong dreams come to fruition; He was hired as a new play-by-play announcer for the San Antonio Spurs. He is one of the youngest on-air employees of the NBA and is one of the first Native American broadcasters for the league. Jacob is the son of Dana Tobey and Christine Willis Tobey.
He grew up on Cape Cod in Sandwich, Massachusetts. From a very young age, Jacob has always had a passion for sports, and he has a specific fascination with basketball. The idea of commenting on the sport came naturally to him.
"I would always play video games downstairs like NBA 2k video games and pretend I was the announcer, or I was playing basketball in the driveway with my friends in Sandwich, and I would just start announcing as I was playing or if I was off to the side, I would announce what was going on in the driveway".
Jacob always knew he wanted to be a reporter. This idea solidified once he realized he was not cut out to be an NBA player, but knew he wanted to do whatever it took to get as close to the game as possible without actually being one of the athletes. Announcing felt like the perfect fit.
It was throughout middle and high school that Jacob began announcing local sports games. When his high school, Sturgis East, didn't have a radio station to broadcast sports, he decided to create one. "My friend Kevin and I… he knew I wanted to chase this dream, and for the sole purpose of that, we convinced the school to give us some money to buy radio equipment, and we started our own radio station where I would go broadcast some of the athletic games".
Early on in his journey, Jacob recalls long days and nights doing play-by-play for various games. No game was too small or too far, as he saw the bigger picture and was willing to work hard for his dream. One of the standout moments very early in his career was announcing the Mashpee Falcons championship football game at Gillette Stadium in 2017. "Those kinds of things make you want to work even harder because then you get a little taste. I announced a game in Gillette stadium; who can say that as a 20-year-old kid? It made me want it even more."
During college, Jacob would take hour long train rides on the weekends, waking up early in the mornings to announce college games. All while many of his peers were enjoying their time off. Tobey's high level of and drive commitment to his career is evident when speaking with him. When asked where he gets this go getter mentality from, he credits his parents.
"my dad […] he's a super hard worker and raised me that way. He was a state police officer in Massachusetts." My mom was also super supportive too. She would drive me anywhere."
Jacob has worked on television previously, most recently for 9NEWS in Denver, but his new position for the NBA is undoubtedly his largest platform and the spotlight is on. Knowing this, Jacob wants to ensure he is using his newfound stardom to represent the Wampanoag Nation on a national level.
He spoke proudly about wearing his bolo tie, a gift he received from his cousin tribal member Coreen Moore, on air. He plans on continuing to do that in his new position.
"I've already worn it on TV when I was in Denver doing television there, and I'm going to wear that a lot here, too," he noted. "I have a microphone accessible for a lot of people to hear, and when I go on TV, and I wear that tie, you know, I'm going to say my name is Jacob Tobey, and I represent the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe."
When asked what advice he would give to tribal youth who may be interested in pursuing a similar career, Jacob highlighted the importance of having a strong work ethic and the personal drive it takes to succeed.
"There's always someone trying to be better than you or trying to get your job or working harder than you. And so just be the hardest working person …that you're around, you know, in your friend group or at school. Don't let people tell you no. Whether you don't have much experience yet or no one in your friend group, or your family, or tribe…has ever done this before, who cares? No one ever did it before me; I didn't care."
Congratulations to Jacob and his family on this exciting new chapter in life. To watch Jacob on-air, visit nba.com/spurs/schedule so you never miss a game.
