ABC SPORTS PRESENTS NBA FINALS ON ABC DETROIT PISTONS VS. SAN ANTONIO SPURS BEGINNING THURSDAY, JUNE 9 LIVE 8:30 P.M., ET

CHEVROLET NBA GAME TIME 8:30-9:00 P.M., ET

GAME 1 DETROIT PISTONS VS. SAN ANTONIO SPURS 9:00 P.M., ET

ABC TELEVISION NETWORK

THE NBA FINALS ON ABC ARE AVAILABLE IN HDTV

For the first time in 18 years, the NBA Finals will be contested by teams that won the league's previous two championships. The Detroit Pistons, the 2004 champions, earned the right to meet the Spurs, the 2003 champions, by defeating the Miami Heat 88-82 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals at American Airlines Arena last night. ABC Sports will present live, exclusive coverage of Game 1 on THURSDAY, JUNE 9 from the SBC Center in San Antonio, Texas, with coverage beginning at 8:30 p.m., ET with Chevrolet NBA Game Time.

Not since the 1986 champion Boston Celtics met the 1985 champion Los Angeles Lakers in the 1987 NBA Finals have the two most recent champions met in the league's title series.

ANNOUNCERS:
Emmy Award-winning announcer Al Michaels will call the NBA Finals for the second consecutive season. His partner is former NBA head coach Hubie Brown, who was recently selected to the Basketball Hall-of-Fame. Michele Tafoya, in her third season with the NBA on ABC, will serve as sideline reporter along with ESPN's Stuart Scott.

CHEVROLET NBA GAME TIME:
Mike Tirico is the host of Chevrolet NBA Game Time, which will be live from the site of the NBA Finals. He will be joined by veteran analyst Bill Walton, one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history, with feature reports presented by Ahmad Rashad. Guest analysts TBD.

During Chevrolet NBA Game Time prior to Game 1, Mike Tirico will have an interview with former Lakers head coach Phil Jackson.

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE/NATIONAL ANTHEM:
Will Smith will tip off The Finals musical lineup prior to Game 1, as he performs his hit single, "Switch," from his recently released album "Lost and Found," and that will be followed by player introductions. Alanis Morissette, whose studio, acoustic song-for-song rendering of "Jagged Little Pill Acoustic Tour" is set for release June 13, six days after she launches the "Jagged Little Pill Acoustic Tour," will then sing the U.S. national anthem, her first televised performance of the anthem since becoming an American citizen earlier this year.

HALFTIME FEATURE, GAME 1: MANU GINOBILI:
Argentinean Superstar: Manu Ginobili has reached Elvis status in his home country of Argentina. Growing up in Bahia Blanca, the one basketball community in a country devoted to soccer, the Ginobilis are a hoops family who have spread their roots. With his grandmother, parents, uncles and brothers, Manu has become a superstar of legendary status after all of his success in the NBA. But with all the highs that come with stardom, there are lows as well: After signing his contract with the Spurs last summer, Manu's family became potential victims of a kidnapping plot. Not an uncommon problem in Argentina and other Latin America countries, celebrities' families become targets to those looking for a monetary payoff. This is in part due to a struggling economy, where bottom feeders try to take advantage of others who are doing well. But while his family went through a time of constant bodyguarding and a handful of scares, things are improving now and the threat against his family has lessened, allowing the Ginobilis and the country to relish the fame and achievements Manu continues to enjoy.

DETROIT PISTONS VS. SAN ANTONIO SPURS
SBC Center, San Antonio, Texas - Games 1, 2, 6, 7
The Palace at Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan - Games 3, 4, 5

REGUALR SEASON SERIES: Tied 1-1
12/3/04 San Antonio 80 Detroit 77 @ San Antonio
3/20/05 Detroit 110 San Antonio 101 @ Detroit

PLAYOFF HISTORY:
This marks the first time that these two franchises have met in the NBA Finals.

SAN ANTONIO SPURS:
2004- 05 Regular Season: 59-23 (2nd in Western Conference, Southwest Division Champions)

2004 Playoffs: 1st Round: Defeated Denver: 4-1
Western Conference Semifinals: Defeated Seattle: 4-2
Western Conference Finals: Defeated Phoenix: 4-1

2005 Playoff Stats: Tim Duncan 24.9 points/game, 11.7 rebounds/game
Manu Ginobili 21.8 points/game, 5.8 rebounds/game
Tony Parker 13.1 points/game, 9.2 rebounds/game

NBA Finals History: The Spurs, making their third appearance in the NBA finals, and are seeking their third National title in the last seven years. They beat the New York Knicks in 1999 and the New Jersey Nets in 2003.

DETROIT PISTONS:
2004-05 Regular Season: 54-28 (2nd in Eastern Conference, Central Division Champions)

2004 Playoffs: 1st Round: Defeated Philadelphia: 4-1
Eastern Conference Semifinals: Defeated Indiana: 4-2
Eastern Conference Finals: Defeated Miami: 4-3

2004 Playoff Stats: Richard Hamilton 21.3 points/game, 4.9 assists/game
Chauncey Billups 18.0 points/game, 6.6 assists/game
Rasheed Wallace 14.7 points/game, 7.4 rebounds/game
Ben Wallace 9.8 points/game, 11.7 rebounds/game
Tayshaun Prince 14.7 points/game, 6.9 rebounds/game

NBA Finals History: The defending World champion Pistons are making their fourth appearance in the NBA Finals. They beat the heavily favored Los Angeles Lakers last season. They appeared in the Finals three straight times, losing to the Lakers in 1988, defeating the Lakers in 1989, and then defeating the Trailblazers in 1990.

NBA FINALS IN HDTV:
For the third consecutive year, the NBA Finals are being offered in HDTV. ABC has broadcast a number of high-profile events in HDTV, including last year's NBA Finals, Super Bowl XXXVII, the Academy Awards and "Monday Night Football." All of ABC's programs will use 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format.

NBA FINALS IN SAP:
The NBA Finals sponsored by ESPN Deportes will be available in Spanish language through Secondary Audio Programming (SAP). Viewers can choose this secondary audio signal through their television, a stereo or VCR equipped to receive SAP signals.

Alvaro Martin (play-by-play) and Carlos Morales (analyst) will call the games in their own words in Spanish. Martin does play-by-play for NBA, NFL, MLB and hosts NFL Semanal, and Morales is an analyst on ESPN Deportes.

THE FINALS ON ABC (all Finals games preceded by Chevrolet NBA Game Time)
Thurs., June 9 8:30 p.m. NBA Finals - Game 1 @ San Antonio
Sun., June 12 8:30 p.m. NBA Finals - Game 2 @ San Antonio
Tues., June 14 8:30 p.m. NBA Finals - Game 3 @ Detroit
Thurs., June 16 8:30 p.m. NBA Finals - Game 4 @ Detroit
Sun., June 19 8:30 p.m. NBA Finals - Game 5* @ Detroit
Tues., June 21 8:30 p.m. NBA Finals - Game 6* @ San Antonio
Thurs., June 23 8:30 p.m. NBA Finals - Game 7* @ San Antonio

(*If necessary)