Few local sports talk shows get the quality of guests that Sports Talk 980’s “John Thompson Show” scores on a regular basis.
On Friday, Thompson welcomed NBA Commissioner David Stern to the show and Coach got the NBA boss to confirm something that has been talked about but never pinned down, let alone by Stern.
Upon questioning from Thompson and his sidekick, Al Koken, Stern said after the 2008 Olympics the NBA will likely begin to brand leagues outside the United States. Stern said he expects to see NBA China and NBA Europe first and that other areas of the globe will likely sport the NBA logo at some point.
“Who better to advance basketball worldwide than the NBA,” Stern told them, “and if we don’t do it someone else will.”
Kudos to Coach and Al for getting Stern on the record.
New show has potential
Speaking of SportsTalk 980, “Sundays with Carol Maloney and Andy Pollin” is a fun show and can be heard now each week until football season from 10 a.m. — noon. Maloney, the Comcast SportsNet anchor, and Pollin, WTEM’s jack-of-all-trades, have a great rapport and the show has lots of potential. Check it out.
Hoops ratings keep surging
ESPN posted record-high ratings with the final two games of the Eastern Conference finals between the Heat and Pistons. At TNT, they set records for the Suns-Mavericks Western Conference finals. This may turn out to be the best-rated NBA Playoffs in years from start to finish with both ESPN and TNT posting double-digit rating increases. The Washington area ranks among the tops in viewership.
Jim Williams is a seven-time Emmy Award-winning TV producer, director and writer.
