AT&T LAUNCHES FIRST SPONSORSHIP OF DREAM TEAM

     Olympic sponsor AT&T will be the first of 13 sponsors to
launch a Dream Team promo, according to Michael Hiestand of USA
TODAY.  Beginning August 14, AT&T will distribute rubber outdoor
basketballs to consumers buying $50 of AT&T products.  Hiestand
writes, "Something to watch: Potential conflicts between Dream
sponsors and players' individual ad deals."  Ten of the 13
sponsors can use players if they are introduced in the team
context, but "one potential snafu: Shaquille O'Neal, a.k.a. Mr.
Pepsi, showing up even fleetingly" in a Coca-Cola promo (USA
TODAY, 8/1).  In Washington, columnist Tony Kornheiser criticizes
the Dream Team selection process under the header, "Once is a
Dream, Twice is a Marketing Reality."  Kornheiser: "Cleary, USA
Basketball, a wholly owned subsidiary of the NBA, sought to field
a team that will put the kindest, gentlest face on U.S. pro
basketball --- to make it easier to sell time shares in the NBA
around the world" (WASHINGTON POST, 8/1).