Wesley (number 28, far right) poses with his fellow finalists (Photo: TBD Staff)

Last night, the Washington Wizards held final auditions for the job of PA announcer at the Verizon Center. I'd previously written about the search here and here, and last night the process all came to fruition as the initial pool of over 200 applications was whittled down. Wizards Senior Director of Game Operations Danny Zollars estimated the total number of applicants as "closer to 225 [than 200]."

First, 50 of the best announcers were invited to the final audition. Of those, 31 made it to the Verizon for the auditions. After a script reading in front of a panel of judges that included Wizards owner Ted Leonsis, Wizards Executive Vice President of Business Operations and Mystics COO Greg Bibb, and Zollars, the best 16 announcers were invited to show their stuff behind the PA microphone in the arena itself.

The arena audition required versatility, as hopefuls were asked to read in-game promos, make in-game announcements ("Foul on Gilbert Arenas," etc.), ad-lib for the arena's Kiss Cam, and finally, introduce the starting lineups.

After this audition, five finalists remained. This time, they were asked to simply introduce the starting lineups. "Make it your own," was Zollars's final instructions to the group. Then followed a day-long process of interviews and due diligence before the Wizards made the official announcement this afternoon.

In the end, the job went to Ralph Wesley, a native and resident of Northeast D.C., who just completed his first season as the main PA man for the Washington Mystics. He had previously served as the Mystics' back-up play-by-play man since June 2007, and had also announced games at his alma mater, Delaware State and the Atlantic-10 conference. Outside the announcing arena, Wesley has worked with ESPN 980 and Doc Walker's ProView.

"Ironically, at the end of the day, after a long and thorough search process, we felt the best candidate was a familiar candidate," Bibb said in a statement. "We are excited to have Ralph as the new voice of Washington Wizards home games."

As he sweated out the process with his fellow final five applicants last night, Wesley talked to TBD about his first experience as an announcer. "It was in 2003 at a Delaware State baseball game," he said. "I got up behind the mic and said something, and everyone was just sitting there, open-mouthed. They couldn't believe what they'd just heard."

Wesley still does the school's football and basketball games. "Announcing is a passion," he said last night. "It's something I don't take lightly." He'll get a chance to indulge that passion in front of a whole new audience this season.