NBA Opening Day

Its probably wise that the NBA chooses to open the season with just three games, otherwise fans may not be able to control the surge of ecstasy that the first day of the season brings.

I'm not sure I've mentioned this before ... but I love you OneHD, thank you for starting the season with a double-header.

The 2010/2011 NBA season tipped off with the much-talked about Miami Heat travelling to Boston to take on the Celtics. Due to work commitments and a personal training session, I missed most of the game but got back in time to see the final two minutes and Ray Allen knock down the game-winning triple from the corner. The Heat will certainly take time to gel so them losing was no surprise to me, especially on the road. It was funny to hear the Celtics fans chanting "over rated" to the Miami big 3.

Back to Ray Allen tho ... he finished the game with 20 points on 7 of 13 shooting including 5 triples. Rajon Rondo was the other stand-out with 17 assists. For Miami, LeBron did what he does with 31 points but a costly 8 turnovers. Wade and Bosh both struggled from the field, don't expect this to continue.

In the second game of the One double-header, the defending champion LA Lakers hosted the Houston Rockets. I got to watch most of the 1st quarter while I was on lunch and much of the 4th quarter because work was very quiet today (not that I'm complaining!).

Houston got off to a quick start with Kevin Martin and Aaron Brooks hot early. I'm not sure if I've mentioned him before, but I'm a BIG fan of Brooks and love watching him play. With Brooks, Scola, Martin, Yao and Buddinger, Houston are a fun team to watch and you can't help but cheer for them. It would've been great to see them knock off the Lakers but it just wasn't to be. The Rockets had their chances and pushed the champs to the limit, but Gasol, Kobe and Odom were just too good in the end winning 112 - 110.

For the Rockets, Brooks finished with 26 points (including 4 triples), 9 assists, Martin led the way with 26 points and Scola had 18 points (which could've easily been more), 16 boards. For LA, Kobe had 27 points, 7 assists, 5 boards, Gasol had 29 points, 11 boards and Odom had 14 points, 10 boards.

Today was great, but I can't wait for tomorrow when there are 13 games on the card!! Welcome back NBA, I missed you.

ONE HD ... I love you

I've mentioned it a couple of times before, but I want to make sure everyone knows and understands ... I love ONE HD.

Last season, it was "just" bringing the NBA back to free-to-air TV, this season they have added the NBL and in the last week they've also added NBA Classics.

The new season of the NBL kicked off on the weekend and its great to see from the story below that TV ratings for the games were strong. Hopefully it continues throughout the season and we see more and more games next season. Saying that tho, this week ONE are showing 3 live NBL games which is fantastic.

Now, as I mentioned above, I've also noticed ONE are showing NBA Classics. The first game was on the weekend and it was the Heat vs Mavericks in the 2006 Finals. Last night they went way back with a true classic, Nets vs Knicks featuring Bernard King in New York. Its great that these games are being shown so that the kids (and even Generation Y) can see that the NBA didn't start with Michael Jordan. Not surprisingly, King put on an offensive display and just couldn't be stopped.

National Basketball League: NBL viewership figures on ONE HD "outstanding"

ONE HD, the NBL's Australian Official Broadcast partner, issued the following media release this week:

Over the weekend, the NBL made an outstanding return to free-to-air television on
ONE, achieving a ten-fold increase for the season-opening Melbourne v Sydney
game on Friday night compared to the previous season opener.

The game saw the return of the Sydney Kings to the NBL after two years out of the competition and their win over the Tigers was watched by an average audience of 56,000 and a peak of 130,000.

Sunday saw the Adelaide 36ers host last season’s champions, the Perth Wildcats.
The 36ers win was watched by an average audience of 73,000 and a peak of 172,000.

Network Ten’s general manager sport, David White said: “This is an excellent result
for the first round and reflects the work that went into launching the season by all
involved. These early ratings are extremely encouraging and we look forward to
playing a part in the continued growth of this exciting sport.”

Round 2 broadcast details
Wednesday, October 20 @ 5.30pm: New Zealand v Perth
Friday, October 22 @ 8.00pm: Wollongong v Townsville
Sunday, October 24 @ 7.05pm: Melbourne v Perth

New NBL commercial

Here is the new NBL commercial that will be shown on One in the lead-up to the upcoming season. After first viewing, I don't mind it ...

NBL signs deal with Network Ten

I've now about the possibility of this for the last week or so and heard confirmation yesterday but its finally official.

MEDIA RELEASE

26 March 2010

NBL SIGNS DEAL WITH NETWORK TEN

ONE AND TEN THE NEW HOME OF AUSTRALIAN BASKETBALL

Following a thrilling 2009/10 National Basketball League season that marked a renaissance for the NBL and just days after announcing the rebirth of the Sydney Kings, Basketball Australia have unveiled a new broadcast deal with Network Ten and its digital sports channel ONE.

In a move that is set to offer a wide array of commercial opportunities for the NBL, BA has signed a five-year deal to show games live on both ONE and TEN nationally through to the end of the 2014/15 NBL season.

Basketball Australia Chief Executive Officer Larry Sengstock said the new deal was a great opportunity for future growth of the NBL.

“As a league the NBL has undertaken to reshape itself over the past two years in order to allow us to reform the sport commercially,” said Sengstock. “This commitment from ONE and TEN is a massive vote of confidence in the advances we have made recently.

“Coming on top of the success of the 2009/10 season with its 5% increase in attendance and sold-out Grand Final series as well as the recent announcement of the return of the Sydney Kings to the competition for 2010/11, this deal is fantastic news for the NBL and basketball in general.”

“Partnering with ONE and TEN will provide the NBL with significant and valuable cross-promotional opportunities and will be very attractive to sponsors and other prospective commercial partners,” Sengstock added.

Network Ten General Manager - Sport David White added: “We are very pleased to be partnering with basketball in Australia and we recognise all the hard work that has been going into the reformation of the NBL. Of course the NBL provides ONE and TEN with great sports content we can showcase throughout the summer months.”

Live coverage of the NBL will grow over the term of the agreement, starting with a minimum of two live games a week on either ONE or TEN in 20010/11 and increasing to five games per round in the final year of the contract.

Andrew Bogut - new career high

Fittingly on Australia Day in the US, Andrew Bogut recorded a new career high 32 points (and 9 boards) in today's game against the Dallas Mavericks.

The game was shown on One HD so I got to watch the end of it during lunch. Bogut was a perfect 9 of 9 from the field in the second half and finished the game a red-hot 13 of 14 from the field. He proved unstoppable against defenders Dampier and Gooden, giving them jumpers and his whole arsenal of hook shots inside.

Happy Australia Day Andrew Bogut, way to represent!!

High Stakes Hoops

Elite Classic Basketball (ECB) today announces an exciting addition to the Australian sporting calendar.

“Foot Locker Elite Classic - High Stakes Hoops”

The 'Foot Locker Elite Classic - High Stakes Hoops' will see eight teams playing for a total prize pool of $250,000 in a short, sharp and lucrative event.

Network Ten and ECB have created a partnership which results in ONE broadcasting the 'Foot Locker Elite Classic - High Stakes Hoops' in its entirety - over 37 hours of live basketball on free-to-air commercial television.

"We are delighted to partner with ECB to broadcast this exciting event. The 'Foot Locker Elite Classic - High Stakes Hoops' event fills a gap in the current Australian television landscape", Network Ten Head of Sport, David White, said today.

The Adelaide Dome has been selected as the venue for the event due to its basketball-specific facilities and capacity, combined with a strong and knowledgeable basketball fan base in the city.

The innovative format is designed to appeal to fans at the games and the wider national television audience alike, and sees eight teams owned by ‘Team Rights Owners’ who pay a fee to secure the rights to a team. While the winner takes home a majority of the prize pool, six out of the eight Team Rights Owners secure a monetary prize of at least their buy-in fee.

ECB Managing Director Jeff Van Groningen believes the business model is unique. “With six out of the eight Team Rights Owners able to re-coup their initial fee and a significant prize up for grabs this is a chance for players and Team Rights Owners alike to compete in a ‘high stakes’ environment over a short period of time”.

The ‘Foot Locker Elite Classic - High Stakes Hoops’ falls in a clear calendar window, away from regular, top-tier professional commitments for most players.

“This event recognises the global trend in which people are time-poor yet demand unique, dynamic and palatable sporting events. Combining game innovations, celebrity involvement, a prize pool and a terrific live broadcast partner in ONE, the 'Foot Locker Elite Classic - High Stakes Hoops' is the basketball event that responds to this demand”, Van Groningen said.

Foot Locker leads the corporate support for the event and provides its peerless brand strength through a Naming Rights deal for the event. Nike have partnered with Foot Locker and will reveal spectacular uniforms for each of the teams closer to the event.

Triple M has partnered with the 'Foot Locker Elite Classic - High Stakes Hoops' to become the Official Radio Partner of the event.

Iconic sports brand Spalding will be the Official Ball of the ECB. With significant game-ball experience garnered in partnership with the NBA, Spalding will soon unveil a unique ball for the event which is sure to create an impact.

Four Team Rights Owners have been announced today. All are prominent sporting personalities who share an interest in the great game of basketball.

Hawthorn AFL star Lance “Buddy” Franklin has secured the PYTHONS, Melbourne Vixen & Australian Diamond Julie Corletto takes charge of the COASTERS, former NBL great Lanard Copeland in partnership with retired 14-year NBA player Sedale Threatt (Lakers, 76rs, Sonics) direct the RUSH, and local Adelaide legend Brett Maher (18 years Adelaide 36rs and triple Olympian) will steer the FLEET.

“I’m a big basketball fan and always have been. I’m looking forward to putting a squad together to try and win this event. I like the format, it’s so unique”, Lance Franklin said today.

Four Team Rights slots are available - RAYS, REEF, CYCLONES and MONARCHS - with announcements to follow.

Several innovative rule changes will see enhanced interest in the event.

On two occasions during each game, one in each half, the coach or on-court captain of each team may opt to use a “game breaker” phase. Over the next 3 minutes of clock time every three-point shot scored will count as four points. The backboard at the team’s attacking end will be brightly lit in green LED lighting, denoting the “game breaker” phase is in effect. Strategy will develop quickly around this unique phase of play.

A further innovation will see each individual quarter scored separately from the final game score. While the winning team will always get the ‘W’ in the column, the team winning each quarter receives bonus ‘elite points’ that accumulate during the competition and are assessed when distributing prize money for those teams not making the Foot Locker Elite Classic Final Four.

Coaching legend Brian Goorjian has thrown his support behind the event. “This event is innovative and ground-breaking and has the potential to really engage fans. It’s a showcase for the sport on free-to-air television”, Goorjian said. The winner of an unprecedented 6 NBL Championships added, “I like the ingredients. Former players and coaches are involved, and new coaching strategies will be employed to maximize the benefits of the rule changes. The whole thing is dynamic. Team Rights Owners are coming into this from other sports because they believe in it and I have no doubt it will attract top players. They’ll want to be part of this”.

ONE broadcast schedule:

Tuesday 6 April & Wednesday 7 April:
12.30pm – 8.30pm AEST & Bris / 10.30am – 6.30pm Per / 12noon – 8pm Ade

Thursday 8 April:
11.30am – 7.30pm AEST & Bris / 9.30am – 5.30pm Per / 11am – 7pm Ade

Friday 9 April:
4.30pm – 8.30pm AEST & Bris / 2.30pm – 6.30pm Per / 4pm – 8pm Ade

Sunday 11 April:
FINAL: 5pm – 7.30pm AEST & Bris / 3pm – 5.30pm Per / 4.30pm – 7pm Ade

For more information, check out the High Stakes Hoops website.

Houston vs New Orleans

I was looking forward to the NBA game on OneHD today between the Rockets and the Hornets and it certainly didn't disappoint.

From my point of view it had just about everything you could hope to see:

• A back and forth, close game
• Chris Paul triple double
• Great shooting from both teams
• An offensive explosion from David West
• Great shooting from both Aaron Brooks (pictured below) and Shane Battier for the Rockets (both had 5 triples)
• A nice 12 minute cameo from David Andersen off the bench (6 points, 4 boards)

The only thing missing today was Rockets rookie Chase Budinger who I think could be a handy player for the team in the near future. With Scola, Brooks, Landry and co there is a lot to like for the Houston Rockets, even without their superstars in Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady.

Despite 44 points from David West, the Houston Rockets won the game 108 - 100 behind 27 from Aaron Brooks, 20 from Battier and 18 from Landry off the bench.

The importance of free-throw shooting

I just watched the end of the Milwaukee Bucks vs Chicago Bulls game on One HD. Not a great spectacle but a hard-fought close game down the stretch. Essentially the Bucks jumped the Bulls early, Bulls eventually find some form and overtake the Bucks in the final quarter.

What got me about this game was what I also saw in the closing minutes of the Denver Nuggets vs Portland Trailblazers last week. In today's game, the Bulls got momentum on their side, got in front of the Bulls but failed to put them away due to some errant free-throw shooting in the final minutes.

The Bucks were struggling to score down the stretch and finding themselves behind on the scoreboard they put the Bulls on the line to make them earn the points and stop the clock. First it was Brad Miller who is normally a good free-throw shooter (80% over his career), 20 seconds to go and he misses his first, makes his second to give his team just a two point lead leaving the door open for the Bucks. Then Andrew Bogut used his last foul to ensure it was Joakim Noah a very average free-throw shooter (68% and horrible technique) that was sent to the line. Again, Bulls up by two so Noah could've basically ended it by hitting them both, instead he missed them both and keep the Bucks right in the game. Unfortunately they couldn't take advantage of it, but if the Bulls had made their free-throws this game would have been over much sooner. Milwaukee could've made their job a lot easier too shooting just 5 of 10 from the free-throw line themselves.

I meant to blog about the Denver Portland game the other day with the same theme in mind. Again, thanks to One HD I got to actually watch it and this was a much more entertaining game than todays. It was essentially a battle between Carmelo Anthony (pictured right) and Chauncey Billups vs Brandon Roy and Rudy Fernandez.

In the final four minutes of the game, both teams were in the penalty meaning that any defensive foul would send the other team to the line to shoot two. In a close game, this foul count meant it was always going to come down to free-throw shooting. For Denver, Carmelo cooly stepped to the line on four occasions during this time and made all eight free-throws. For Portland tho, the usually reliable Brandon Roy missed 1 of 2, Andre Miller missed 1 of 2, LaMarcus Aldridge missed 1 of 2 and with just 4 seconds to play and his team down by 1, Greg Oden missed 2 of 2.

In such a close game between two top teams, free-throw shooting down the stretch was the difference between winning and losing. Its because of this, when the game is in the balance, coaches try to have their best free-throw shooters on the court. Its not a glamourous part of the game but if you want to be a great player who can be relied on in the final minutes of the game, you have to spend time practicing your free-throws.

One HD ... I love you

Aussie NBA fans were in heaven on Friday night when One HD showed the first of its NBA: Hall of Fame Tribute games. They started with Chicago Bulls vs Utah Jazz in game 5 of the '97 NBA Finals Series ... better known as "the flu" game. FaceBook was full of comments from my basketball friends who were loving Michael Jordan's heroics.

Having been starved of NBA action over the last couple of years I am so looking forward to One HD showing at least three NBA games per week. The classic NBA games are a great way to get fans warmed up for the upcoming season.

If you don't know or somehow don't remember this game, check the footage below.

On a side note, I stumbled across a fashion article earlier. Could this be the only time the phrase "Jordan-esque" has ever been used in derogatory way?

"There were some truly hideous fashion faux pas. Silver sequinned 'pasties', for example, belong in a lap dancing club unless you subscribe to a Jordan-esque dress code."

Thankfully I know they are referring to the British model Jordan (Katie Price), rather than the G.O.A.T, otherwise it would be sacrilegious!

NBL update

With the NBL season just over 6 weeks away, there is starting to be some news and things happening.

Firstly, Fox is back on board saying they "back basketball". Whether this is good news or not I can't say, but since they took back their $35 million offer, I'd much prefer to see the NBL on OneHD. By now, a lot more households would have access to OneHD than Foxtel and this would really help bring the sport back in front of the viewing/sporting public. Look at how much netball is shown, its ridiculous ... its on so often I almost find myself watching it ... almost.

Now that most teams have their rosters close to completed we're at the point where import spots are announced. Over the last week there have been a number of announcements:

1. The Adelaide 36ers have confirmed the signing of American point guard John Gilchrist, agreeing to terms with the exciting import after a successful two-week trial period with the club.
2. The Gold Coast Blaze NBL basketball team have unveiled their first US import for the up-coming season. In a move designed to provide a bridge between the more experienced and the younger players, twenty seven-year-old 6’6” forward Michael Joiner will play in the blue and gold strip in season 2009/10.
3. Skytrans Cairns Taipans fans are in for a treat with the team today announcing the signing of powerhouse American Richard Melzer for the 2009-10 National Basketball League season. Melzer, 29, a 202cm power forward, was a standout performer in his only season with the New Zealand Breakers in 2005/06 averaging 18.6 points and 7.4 rebounds an outing before heading back to the US.
4. The Adelaide 36ers are excited about the arrival this Sunday of NBL excitement machine Cortez Groves. Groves will take the vacant import spot and play alongside the already secured John Gilchrist, giving Adelaide an exciting all-American starting backcourt.
5. The Perth Wildcats signed St Louis University shooting guard Kevin Lisch. Lisch is a 6’2 shooting guard who will provide the team with some much needed scoring power, speed and toughness. He has just completed a four-year stint at St Louis University and comes highly recommended by legendary St Louis Head Coach Rick Majerus, who is a good friend of Rob Beveridge’s.
6. American power forward David Gruber has been signed by the Wollongong Hawks for the 2009/10 NBL season. The 27 year old from Iowa, USA has spent the past several years playing in Victoria for the SEABL Frankston Blues and played his first year of NBL with the now defunct Sydney Spirit last season. He played out his college career in his home state representing the University of Northern Iowa until graduating in 2004.

New Blaze import Michael Joiner

Stephen Curry

Coming in to the draft, I'd heard about Stephen Curry. He was described as the "best shooter" in the draft and that's probably when I started to take a bit more interest in him. I've mentioned it before but a good basketball shooting tip is to watch great shooters in action, success leaves clues.

As I don't get to watch college basketball (although with One HD now I will be able to next season) and I tend to follow the NBA from a fantasy basketball perspective, I don't usually take too much interest in rookies until they have proved themselves in the big show. I didn't even realise until last week that Stephen is the son of former NBA great Dell Curry.

As mentioned last week, I was able to watch the NBA draft for the first time and heard the angry NY crowd go nuts as Curry was drafted by the Warriors, who got to pick before the hometown Knicks. I heard Dickey Vitale numerous times throughout the coverage shower praise on Stephen and say that the team's who didn't draft him were crazy and that he would definitely win Rookie of the Year.

So today, with the phone not ringing in the office, I decided to do some more research in to Stephen Curry.

Firstly, here's an excerpt from a great article by the crew at Dime (click on the title to read the full story):

Stephen Curry: Lethal Weapon | Dime Magazine (www.dimemag.com) : Daily NBA News, NBA Trades, NBA Rumors, Basketball Videos, Sneakers

“Nothing about my success here over the last three years has changed me at all, because I live in the moment,” says Curry. “I’m not worried about what’s going to come next. I’m not worried at all. I do everything one step at a time, and I try to be as confident doing so as possible.”

For Stephen to achieve everything he sets his mind to, he needs to believe it completely. And right now, he believes that he can do anything. That mantra is inscribed on the forefront of his sneaker, penned as “I Can do all things…” (Editor’s note: The full quote is “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13) Tomorrow won’t come across his radar until tomorrow. But when it rolls around, know that he’ll have the same confidence and faith that he has today.

And here's some video footage of him in action:

NBA Draft '09

Yesterday was a mix of emotions ...

The good, was getting to watch the NBA draft "live" as it happened on channelsurfing.net. This is the first time I've ever been able to actually watch the draft and it was great! It would've been even better if I knew more of the players but now that I have One HD I'll get the chance to watch more college basketball from now on.

The bad, was waiting and waiting and waiting as team after team failed to pick Aussie Patrick Mills. I was e-mailing friends updates and we were all shocked and amazed at how far Patty fell. By the time we got to the second round of the draft, I was literally shaking my head as I watched team's pick players not named Mills, random euro-players that have done nothing on the world stage, players that would be "shelved" for a couple of years until they were more ready for the NBA. Meanwhile, Patty Mills who has proven himself on the world's biggest stage at the Olympics against the USA and the rest of the world's best, had to wait until pick # 55 when his name was called by the Portland Trailblazers.

I wasn't alone in my shock at the fall that Patty took, he was believe to be going mid to late in the first round. Check out the live draft coverage from Dime yesterday and all the comments about Mills ... sure, they were all probably Aussies, but that's not the point. LOL

Here are some highlights from the early picks in the 2009 NBA Draft:

All hail the champs!

Yesterday the LA Lakers won the NBA title defeating the Orlando Magic 99 - 86.

Full credit to the Lakers for doing what needed to be done to win the Championship Series. Orlando had their chances losing two overtime games but they just weren't good enough.

Some of the numbers from game 5:

Lakers

Kobe Bryant 30 points, 6 boards, 5 assists, 4 blocks, 8 of 8 from the free-throw line
Lamar Odom 17 points, 10 boards, 3 of 3 from downtown (off the bench)
Pau Gasol 14 points, 15 boards, 4 blocks

Magic

Rashard Lewis 18 points, 10 boards, 4 assists (just 6 of 19 from the field)
Dwight Howard 11 points, 10 boards, 3 blocks

I'm heading home shortly in time to catch the second half on OneHD. I'll give a more complete wrap of my thought on the Lakers' title win tomorrow.

In the meantime, if you haven't seen the highlights yet:

Orlando Magic ... home cooking

There's nothing like playing at home!

After stinking up game 1, narrowly losing in overtime in game 2, the Orlando Magic had to be looking forward to playing at home in game 3. Sleeping in your own bed, not having to travel, playing on your own court, in front of your own fans, on your own rings ... hopefully it would all add up to a much needed win.

As I mentioned earlier in the week, if the Magic are to win, they need their shooters to fire ... and FIRE they did in game 3. The inconsistent Rafer Alston found his range hitting 8 of 12 from the field, Hedo Turkoglu was 7 of 12, Rashard Lewis was 8 of 14 (including 3 triples) and Mickael Pietrus came off the bench shooting 7 of 11 from the field.

Dwight Howard continued to spend more time at the free-throw line than anywhere else as the Lakers again played their version of Hack-a-Shaq with him. He was 5 of 6 from the field and 11 of 16 from the line.

The Magic shot a ridiculously good overall clip of 62.5% for the game ... but still only won by 4 points.

The Lakers shot 51% but managed to hang with the red-hot Magic behind 31 points, 8 boards from Kobe Bryant (although he made just 5 of 10 from the line) and 23 points on 9 of 11 shooting from Pau Gasol.

Lamar Odom, who had been massive in the first 2 games was held to just 11 points, 2 boards due to foul trouble.

Due to One HD showing replays the day after, I haven't watched game 3 yet but will do so tonight. From a basketball shooting perspective, it should be great checking out the Magic shooters on fire and LA still managing to keep it close.

Here are the highlights of the game (I am avoiding watching them):

One-dimensional

Thanks to my new best friend One HD, I've been able to see every game of the Orlando Cleveland Eastern Conference Finals in the NBA.

It was a great series and from my own perspective it was fantastic to see the basketball shooting display put on by the Magic. Sure, Dwight was a beast inside and carried his team's scoring in the paint, but one player doesn't not make a team (as was shown by LeBron and the Cavs) and it was the Orlando three-point shooting that made the difference. When Hedo, Shard, Pietrus or Alston were firing from downtown, the Magic looked good and if more than one of them was "on", Orlando were unstoppable.

On to the title of this post tho. Getting to watch all the games of the series and not having watched too many games in recent times due to no Foxtel, I noticed how one-dimensional Delonte West (pictured right) from Cleveland is. Delonte essentially has one move, the step back jumper. It doesn't matter whether he's beyond the arc or drives in to the middle of the key, you know he's going to that shot.

Now that's not quite fair because his other move is turning the corner on his defender and driving to the basket, so technically he has two moves.

When I was watching on Sunday, I almost burst out laughing when West actually turn down a wide-open three to dribble in to a defender and then step back to take the three. That's right, he turned down the open spot-up three, just so he could go to his signature move, draw the defender and shoot the step-back triple.

Don't get me wrong, I like Delonte and have kept an eye on him since he was drafted to the Boston Celtics back in 2004 and was then traded to the Sonics. It just goes to show that you don't have to be a superstar to make it in the NBA. If you know your game, know what your team needs from you and you have a go-to move that you can rely on to get points, you can make it to the top level of the game.

Orlando Magic shock the Cavs ... and the world!

Yesterday the Orlando Magic pulled off a come from behind win on the road in Cleveland to win the first game of their NBA Eastern Conference Finals match-up with LeBron James and the Cavaliers.

I followed the yahoo scoreboard at work yesterday and when I got home I was pumped to find the replay of the game on One HD (I love you).

While John Rillie chose to focus on Dwight Howard's dunk that stopped the game, for me it was all about basketball shooting.

The knock on LeBron James has been his poor jump shooting (and free-throw shooting) but that was evidenced last night. I got home in time for the second quarter and LBJ was on a role sticking jumper after jumper. When his shot is on he is virtually impossible to guard. Despite missing his first four field goal attempts, LeBron finished an impressive 20 of 30 from the field including 3 triples.

The real hero of the night tho was Rashard Lewis of the Orlando Magic. Shard also started the game slowly but after half-time could not miss. It took a while for the Cavs to adjust and by the time they did, it was too late, he was on fire. He scored 17 points in the second half, 11 in the final quarter and was 7 of 7 from the field after the main break.

The final quarter was great to watch with the lead going back and forth between the two times. In the final minutes it was big shot after big shot being hit which is great to see from a shooting perspective. Unfortunately for Delonte West, it was his shot from the corner in the final few seconds that proved the difference and the Magic hung on for the win.

The crew at Dime have a good breakdown of the game itself and Rashard's shooting performance.

Here are the highlights from the game if you didn't catch it:

Free-to-air TV on cards

Thanks to JR for pointing out the following potentially exciting news for the NBL, coverage of the league on the new One HD sports channel.

Basketball fans around the country have been loving the NBA coverage they've been getting for the last month or so on this channel and everyone has been wondering why the NBL also couldn't jump onboard. Well ... the good news is they can! Click on the title below to read the full story.

Free-to-air TV on cards if new NBL takes off : thewest.com.au

4th May 2009, 13:30 WST

The National Basketball League could return to free-to-air television next season — if there is an elite men’s competition at all in 2009-10.

Key players in Basketball Australia’s reform process are understood to have held discussions with the Ten network about having NBL games shown on the broadcaster’s dedicated sports channel, One HD.

The concept is viewed as a major boost for the league, which suffered a drop in popularity around the country once Channel 10 stopped showing matches almost a decade ago.

Although pay-TV provider Fox Sports has held the NBL rights in recent seasons, some of the competition’s more powerful clubs believe their product isn’t beamed into enough homes.

However, a new deal with Fox Sports, which included broadcasting every match live as part of a five-year, $30 million arrangement, was a sweetener from BA to convince NBL clubs to give away their control of the league to a new independent body last November.