Agreement on 4-Year, $2.4-Billion TV Pact

The NBA and its television partners have agreed on a contract worth at least $2.4 billion over four years, more than double the current deal.

The contract breaks down to at least $1.6 billion for NBC and $800 million for Turner Sports, two industry sources told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The deal is expected to be announced today after being approved by the NBA’s Board of Governors.

Neither NBC nor Turner would comment on the deal.

Under the current four-year contract, which expires at the end of this season, NBC paid $750 million and Turner paid $350 million. That deal also included a revenue-sharing provision that will net the NBA additional revenue.

The NBA is now firmly established as the No. 2 television sport, trailing only the NFL, which earns $4.4 billion over four years in a deal that expires after this season. Baseball gets $1.7 billion over five years from NBC, Fox and ESPN, an agreement that expires after the 1999 season.

This new contract underlines the NBA’s turnaround from the early 1980s, when the league struggled to find a network to show its games and its championship was broadcast on taped delay.

“There is a much broader public acceptance of the NBA now than there was 15 or 20 years ago,” said Neal Pilson, who ran CBS Sports when the network had the rights to the NBA. “The NBA has established sponsors who support the league on television. It has achieved the prestige and respect it did not have a decade ago.”

NBC’s ratings for the NBA, powered by Michael Jordan’s popularity, have avoided the downward trend afflicting other sports.

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Oliver Saint-Jean could become the first French citizen to play in a regular-season NBA game tonight, but that’s not the name that will appear on the Sacramento Kings’ roster.

The Kings announced Monday that they had activated Saint-Jean from the injured list and that the rookie guard-forward had officially changed his name to Tariq Abdul-Wahad.

Abdul-Wahad, born in Maisons Alfort, France, attended San Jose State and was selected by the Kings as the 11th overall pick in the 1997 draft.

Sacramento also activated center Kevin Salvadori and placed guard Bobby Hurley and power forward Michael Smith on the injured list.

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In his first game back after missing four games because of a pulled hamstring, Detroit Piston guard Joe Dumars suffered a strained left shoulder injury in Sunday’s loss to the Vancouver Grizzlies.

The Pistons did not say how long Dumars will be sidelined.

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San Antonio Spur forward Chuck Person, who has not played since the 1996 playoffs because of back problems, was activated and played Monday night against the Toronto Raptors.