NBA Finals may get whacked in ratings by Sopranos

Jun 9, 2007 - 9:06 PM By Chris Bernucca PA SportsTicker Pro Basketball Editor

SAN ANTONIO (Ticker) - On Sunday night, LeBron James will be more concerned with Tony Parker than Tony Soprano. The rest of America may feel differently.

When the Cleveland Cavaliers and San Antonio Spurs tip off Game Two of the NBA Finals, they will be up against the last episode of "The Sopranos" and figure to get whacked in the TV ratings.

"It's gonna be interesting," Spurs guard Brent Barry said. "Hopefully people will be switching back and forth. But there's a huge following for that show."

Among the HBO mob drama's millions of followers is James, who described himself at Saturday's media session at the AT&T Center as "a big Sopranos fan" and was clearly elated to have been asked about something other than how to beat a double-team.

Members of the Soprano family have been getting knocked off at an alarming rate, much more quickly and ruthlessly than the Cavaliers and Spurs have rubbed out their playoff foes.

With several of Tony Soprano's lieutenants gone, it appears that the boss may be next. But "The King" doesn't think so.

"Me and my guys have definitely sat down to think about it," James said. "My friends think that either the Feds are going to come and get him or he's going to make friends with the Feds and maybe snitch on a lot of people.

"Or he's going to be whacked, which I don't think is going to happen. I hope that he's just able to get away and not worry about nothing."

James has a small problem. He has a previous engagement Sunday night and won't be able to watch the final episode when it airs for the first time. He plans on catching up when he gets back to Cleveland next week.

"I did have my girlfriend TiVo 'The Sopranos,' definitely, so when I get home I'll be able to watch it," James said. "But I think I'll be more focused on Tony Parker."

That will put James in the minority of TV viewers Sunday, traditionally the night of the week with the highest total viewership. At this time of year, most shows are in reruns, part of the reason why the NBA holds its Finals in June.

Game One on ABC was the most-watched program on any network Thursday night. But the 7.9 overnight Neilsen rating also made it the least-watched game in Finals history, a dubious record that likely will be broken Sunday night.

"I think they're gonna beat us in the ratings," Parker said.

That is a bit of a stretch. The most recent episode of "The Sopranos" drew a 4.7 rating, a remarkable number for premium cable network only in a percentage of homes but still considerably below Thursday's rating. Each rating point represents 1.1 million households.

On Sunday night, the Finals may get some help from airing in the time slot reserved for "Desperate Housewives," a comedy that consistently lands in the top 10 in the weekly ratings and stars Eva Longoria, Parker's fiancee.

The basketball also may get a boost from a 30-minute pregame show, although most folk watching that already are committed to jump shots rather than big shots. In essence, both Game Two and "The Sopranos" begin at 9 p.m. EDT, which means Cavaliers-Spurs likely will take a ratings hit in the first half.

"The ratings probably will be a lot higher in the second half," Spurs forward Matt Bonner said.

The relentless NBA season has forced some Sopranos fans to play catch-up. Bonner admitted he is two seasons behind.

"I stopped watching it when I was in Toronto the last few years," he said. "I didn't have HBO. I caught the reruns last summer and then DVDs for the next seasons."

"I'll watch it during vacation," said Parker, who also is planning a wedding in France that is less than a month away. "I'll watch the whole season. I missed the whole season. I've got a lot of catching up to do."

As for Tony Soprano's fate, most of the players believe the end is near.

"I feel like his luck is going to run out," Bonner said. "He's had a lot of close calls."

"I hope not," James added.