USA BBall Selection

London Calling: NBA TV To Carry USA Basketball Selection Show Saturday

Published July 2, 2012

NBA TV will carry the "USA Basketball Selection Show presented by Burger King" Saturday at 7:00pm ET. The 60-minute show will announce the 12 players that will make up the U.S. team competing in the London Games. Matt Winer will host the show, with Grant Hill and Steve Smith providing analysis. The show will include interviews with coach Mike Krzyzewski and USA Basketball Chair Jerry Colangelo. The channel also will carry the USA Basketball press conference from the Wynn Las Vegas. Other Olympic programming on the channel includes "NBA Real Training Camp: USA Basketball presented by Jeep," a behind-the-scenes look at practice ­(July 11, 3:00pm); an exhibition game against Argentina (July 22, 3:30pm); and the semifinals and finals of the FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament on July 7-8. Winer and Smith will call the FIBA games (John Ourand, THE DAILY).

TRIAL PERIOD: In Denver, Dusty Saunders writes NBC's coverage of the Olympic Trials has "caught the attention of viewers." Nielsen data states NBC's Saturday primetime viewing "was up 20 percent nationally over similar coverage in 2008." And that figure does not include "overnight ratings in Northeast households impacted by severe storms." Saturday's track & field trials, "also missing some viewing reports from the East Coast, were up 73% from four years ago." Friday night's swimming competition "was 54 percent higher over similar coverage in 2008" (DENVER POST, 7/2).