Houston business exec Jim McIngvale, who is sponsoring
the Gallery Furniture Charity Basketball Game on October 23
in Houston's Hofheinz Pavilion, told THE DAILY that he is
"talking to two or three different groups about TV
coverage," and hopes to have an announcement "in the next
few days." McIngvale said that "a couple of networks and a
couple of local stations" have expressed interest in the
game, which will feature NBA players such as David Robinson,
Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Stephon Marbury, Gary Payton,
Damon Stoudamire and Allen Iverson. Game tickets run
between $20 and $100, with all proceeds going to cancer
research. When asked if he would consider putting on any
more charity games, McIngvale said, "It's been pretty hot,
I've gotten lots of phone calls. We'll see how this one
comes out and we'll go from there" (THE DAILY).
NETWORK INTEREST? CBS Sports Dir of Communications
LeslieAnne Wade said CBS may look into covering the event:
"In the past CBS has said they would talk to the NBA players
about games. The issue would be whether there's space on
the schedule -- we're pretty booked up with college
football, basketball and the NFL." ESPN spokesperson Dan
Quinn said the network "has no intention of televising
player games during the lockout." Fox Sports Senior
VP/Media Relations Vince Wladika said that while he "can't
confirm or deny" whether Fox is talking with McIngvale, Fox
is "always on the lookout for anything that can fill time
until the NBA's return." ABC Sports Dir of Media Relations
Mark Mandel told THE DAILY: "We don't discuss any of our
business with the press." NBC Sports VP/Sports Information
Ed Markey had no comment (THE DAILY).
