NBA’s Comeback Is the Key One

It was only a couple of months ago that the NBA appeared to be in trouble. Television ratings were down, there was little star power and the league’s marquee team and defending champion was in turmoil.

Things were so bad that Michael Jordan began thinking about a comeback.

Now, the ratings decline is waning, the league’s stars are delivering and the defending champion Lakers are jelling so well that the only problem is, nobody seems to be able to give them a game.

“I think it’s one of the remarkable runs in the history of the game,” said NBC’s Marv Albert, “particularly when you consider where this team was in the middle of the season.”

After the first weekend of the NBA playoffs, NBC’s ratings were off 18%. Now they’re off only 6%. One reason for that is Game 1 of the Laker-San Antonio Spur series Saturday got a 6.0 national rating, while Game 1 of the Western Conference finals last year between the Lakers and Portland Trail Blazers got a 4.8.

Another reason is Game 7 of the Philadelphia 76er-Toronto Raptor series Sunday got a 7.6 rating, the highest for a first- or second-round game since 1999.

Another good sign: Among men 25-54, NBC’s playoff ratings are up 11% from a year ago.

Now the question is: Does the NBA really need Jordan to come back?

“It lends itself to a good debate,” Albert said. “Some columnists will say this will be interesting and the league needs it, and others will say this is bad and put too much focus on Michael and away from the younger players.

“I think the way things have developed, it’s just another added great highlight if he comes back for a year or two. And think of the motivation. With people starting to say Kobe Bryant at 22 is better than Michael was at that age, think what that will do to Michael’s head.”

Doug Collins, Albert’s broadcast partner, said, “I hope he plays, obviously.”

Not surprising, considering Collins would be Jordan’s coach with the Washington Wizards.

“I know Michael well enough to know what he is doing right now,” Collins said. “He’s finding out in his own heart and mind whether or not he can still compete in the NBA. Michael is driven by challenges, we all know that.

“If Michael does come back, it’s not going to detract from anything that is going on.

“I’ve said for the last two years, when everyone was in a huff about the ratings, that they would turn around because of these young players who were going to bad teams. And now all of sudden these teams are in the playoffs. That’s exactly the growth you’ve seen in these young players.

“I think Michael coming back wouldn’t detract in any way from these young players. I agree with Marv, what a story it could be.”

More on the Comeback

NBC’s Steve Jones brings up another question.

“If Michael says, ‘I want to be the same dominant player I was,’ and there’s a chance he might not be, how does he handle that?” Jones said. “I hope he plays for Doug, but he still has a lot of work to do. It’ll be a lot of fun to watch if it happens.”

Kevin Loughery, on CNN/SI, said, “I believe Michael is definitely coming back. And I think it’s great for the NBA. It adds a mystique to the game. Most of the players who have stepped up in his absence--Vince Carter, Kobe, etc.--will be matched up against him. It will be sensational.”

Dallas Maverick owner Mark Cuban, on CNN/SI, said, “I think if M.J. comes back he is going to get his butt kicked all over the court.”

The Sporting News radio network’s Jay Mariotti wrote in his Chicago Sun-Times column that Commissioner David Stern’s response to the possible comeback “has been curiously lukewarm,” adding, “For the NBA boss to be resisting Jordan’s return smacks of an ego run amok.”

A Long Way From Beverly Hills

First Dennis Miller in the football broadcast booth, now Jason Priestley in the auto racing booth.

Priestley, of “Beverly Hills 90210” fame, will be in ABC’s booth at the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, joining Bob Jenkins and Larry Rice.

Priestley, an auto racing enthusiast who has competed in the sport, prepared for this assignment by working a couple of Indy Racing League events.

Other members of the ABC crew will be host Al Michaels, pit reporters Jack Arute, Vince Welch and Dr. Jerry Punch and roving reporter Leslie Gudel.

Besides doing race commentary, Priestley will also ride in the pace car with supermodel Elaine Irwin Mellencamp, wife of rocker John Mellencamp.

Producer Bob Goodrich said, “In terms of technical advancements, Jason Priestley is our best technical advancement.”

ABC will also introduce a camera that is mounted on the side of cars that can pan and provide a unique view of cars passing one another.

Eight cars will be equipped with two in-car cameras, and the one driven by Sarah Fisher will have three. That should tell you something about the focus on Fisher.

Short Waves

While ABC has Indy, NASCAR returns to Fox this weekend with the Coca-Cola 600 from Concord, N.C. . . . Look for improvements in the “Southern California Sports Report.” Mark Houska, a USC graduate who has been a news producer at Fox Sports Net since 1990, will soon take over as the news director of the regional sports report. . . . “National Sports Report” anchor Van Earl Wright will report from the Stanley Cup finals with Phil Esposito and then be back in the anchor rotation. . . . The Preakness on NBC got a 5.6 national rating, up 56% over last year’s 3.6 on ABC.

Tiger Woods may not be competing in the Kemper Open, but he can still be seen on network television this weekend. Woods is part of the Laureus World Sports Awards show, taped Tuesday in Monaco and to be televised Sunday by NBC at 1 p.m., sandwiched between the final round of the Senior PGA Championship and the Laker game. Woods accepted his Sportsman of the Year trophy via a satellite hookup from his home in Orlando, Fla.

In Closing

Keith Olbermann, whose contract with Fox Sports Net isn’t due to expire until the end of the year, says he has received several offers since his break with the cable network last week. But he told the New York Observer that for now he plans to take advantage of “getting 30 weeks of paid vacation at ridiculously high prices.”

Of possibly returning to ESPN, Olbermann said, “My presumption would be that [ESPN] would not have me back were the building on fire and I the only possessor of a fire bucket in the world.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

What Los Angeles Is Watching

A sampling of L.A. Nielsen ratings for May 19-20.

SATURDAY

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Over-the-air Channel Rating Share NBA playoffs: Lakers at San Antonio 4 17.9 38 Horse racing: Preakness Stakes 4 6.9 19 Baseball: Dodgers at New York Mets 5 3.5 10 Baseball: Cleveland at Angels 9 2.1 4 Golf: MasterCard Colonial 2 1.6 5 NHL playoffs: New Jersey at Pittsburgh 7 1.0 3 Auto racing: CART Firestone Firehawk 500 7 0.7 2

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Cable Network Rating Share Horse racing: Preakness Special ESPN 1.1 3 Boxing: Charles Brewer vs. Antwun Echols SHO 1.1 2 Horse racing: 2Day at the Preakness ESPN2 0.9 3 Auto racing: NASCAR The Winston FX 0.8 2 Baseball: San Francisco at Atlanta TBS 0.8 2 Auto racing: ARCA 100 FX 0.7 1 Tennis: ATP Masters Series ESPN 0.5 1 Horse racing: Hollywood Park Today FSN2 0.4 1 Soccer: WUSA, Washington at Carolina TNT 0.2 1 Track & field: UCLA at USC (tape) FSN 0.2 0 Soccer: MLS, Dallas at Galaxy FSN 0.1 0

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SUNDAY

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Over-the-air Channel Rating Share NBA playoffs: Toronto at Philadelphia 4 11.0 26 NBA playoffs: Charlotte at Milwaukee 4 8.7 23 Baseball: Dodgers at New York Mets 5 2.7 7 Golf: MasterCard Colonial 2 2.6 7 Auto racing: Indianapolis 500 time trials 7 1.0 3

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Cable Network Rating Share Baseball: Cleveland at Angels ESPN 1.1 2 Horse racing: Hollywood Park Today FSN2 1.0 2 Auto racing: Indianapolis 500 time trials ESPN2 1.0 2 Drag racing: NHRA Matco Tools Supernationals ESPN 0.9 2 Tennis: ATP Masters Series ESPN 0.7 2

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Weekday ratings: FRIDAY, May 18--NBA, Philadelphia at Toronto, TNT, 2.9/7. MONDAY--Lakers at San Antonio, Ch. 9, 13.9/24, TNT, 5.0/9. TUESDAY--Milwaukee at Philadelphia, TNT, 5.1/5.

Note: Each rating point represents 53,542 L.A. households. Cable ratings reflect the entire market, even though cable is in only 63% of L.A. households.

Look Who’s Talking

Sports figures to be featured on TV and radio, today through Thursday:

Michael Cooper, Lisa Leslie--”Up Close,” today, 2:30 p.m., ESPN, 11:30 p.m., ESPN2

Bill Vukovich--”SportsCentury,” tonight, 5 and 8, ESPN Classic

Cynthia Cooper--”Player’s Journal,” tonight, 5, Lifetime

Trev Alberts, Hugh Douglas, comedian Mark Curry--”The Last Word With Jim Rome,” tonight, 5:30 and 11:30, Fox Sports Net

Luke Prokopec--”Southern California Sports Report,” tonight, 10, FSN

Carlos Hernandez, Lou DiBella--”Rich Marotta’s Neutral Corner,” tonight (after postgame Dodger talk), KXTA (1150)

Tony Stewart--”NASCAR This Morning,” Saturday, 7:30 a.m., FSN

Dale Earnhardt Jr.--”Page One,” Saturday, 9:30 a.m., CNN, 10:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., CNN/SI.

Sports editors Bill Dwyre, Greg Gibson, Doug Jacobs, Nels Jensen--”The Irv Kaze Show,” Saturday, 6-7 p.m., KRLA (870)

Oscar De La Hoya, Carmen Basillio, Francisco “Panchito” Bajado--”Ringside With Johnny Ortiz,” Sunday, 8-11 p.m. (after baseball), KSPN (1110)

Wayne Gretzky--”SportsCentury,” Monday

Norm Nixon, Darrick Martin--”Sports Roundtable,” Tuesday, 4 p.m., Fox Sports Net 2

Shaquille O’Neal, Alonzo Mourning--”Up Close Special With Roy Firestone,” Tuesday, 4 p.m., ESPN

Diana Nyad, Billy Bean, John Feinstein--”The Last Word,” Wednesday