Michael Jordan couldn't win the National Basketball Association season opener for the Washington Wizards, but he did his part to deliver the basic cable prime-time crown to TBS for the week of Oct. 29.

Jordan had an assist from Julia Roberts. Pretty Woman, starring Roberts, was the No. 1 movie on basic cable with a 4.0 household rating despite competition from game seven of the World Series and the delayed Emmys. The movie also was the No. 1 basic cable program among adults 18 to 49 (3,026,000 viewers).

Jordan faced off twice against the World Series during Turner Sports' three midweek NBA nights. Ratings rose a relatively small 27% compared to the potential of a week without a World Series, for a three-game total of 1.9.

The single-game numbers were more impressive: Jordan's presence on the marquee for opening night on Oct. 30 brought in a 3.3 for the Washington Wizards-New York Knicks match, up 106% from last year's Air-less opener. It was the best NBA opening night showing since metering of the games on basic cable began in 1994. The Wizards versus the Atlanta Hawks on Nov. 1 earned a respectable but less impressive 1.6 for TNT, still up 78% from last season's .9 for the corresponding game between Minnesota and San Antonio. Both Jordan games also posted triple-digit increases in key demographics despite competing with games three and five of the World Series.

Turner wasn't the only cable beneficiary of Jordan's return. Comcast Sports Net Mid-Atlantic, which owns the rights to local broadcasts of the Wizards and can show games that also air on the Turner networks, snared a 4.36 on opening night and a 2.0 for the Atlanta game. By comparison, last season's average in November was .89 for 13 games. One point is 20,000 homes in Washington, D.C.

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