Game 6 drew the highest NBA Finals television ratings in eight years.
The Boston Celtics' deciding victory against the Los Angeles Lakers Tuesday night earned a 10.7 rating on ABC, the network said yesterday. It's the highest since Game 6 of the 2000 Finals on NBC between the Lakers and Indiana Pacers.
The series averaged a 9.3 rating, up 50 percent over the 6.2 last year, when the San Antonio Spurs swept the Cleveland Cavaliers. But it fell short of the previous Finals involving the Lakers in 2004, which averaged an 11.5.
The rating is the percentage watching a program among homes with televisions.
Celtics
Boston's streets will be crowded again with screaming fans celebrating a championship -- but this time they'll be wearing green.
Mayor Tom Menino announced plans for a "rolling rally" at 11 a.m. today to celebrate the Boston Celtics' win against the Lakers in the NBA Finals. The parade will start at the TD Banknorth Garden and wind its way through downtown to Copley Square. The parade also will be broadcast on a Jumbotron in Copley Square and Boston Common.
Sixteen World War II-era amphibious "duck boats" will carry the Celtics players, owners and staff. The team's dancers, former Celtics greats and championship trophies from previous years will ride on two flatbed trucks.
City officials urged the hundreds of thousands of fans expected to attend the parade to use public transportation, with streets around the route closed to traffic beginning at 9:30 a.m.
The city has held five other championship parades since 2002 -- three when the New England Patriots won the Super Bowl and two when the Boston Red Sox won the World Series. The previous one was Oct. 30, after the Red Sox swept the Colorado Rockies.
• Boston police said 22 people were arrested during the Celtics' championship celebration, the vast majority for disorderly conduct. Several storefront windows were damaged near the TD Banknorth Garden after the Celtics' win over the Lakers.
SuperSonics
Seattle owner Clay Bennett testified that he made mistakes in dealing with the city of Seattle after he bought the team in 2006.
"We bought this team with grand visions for success," he said. "Did we do everything right, and did we understand everything there was to understand? Certainly not."
Bennett began his second day on the witness stand in a federal trial over the Sonics' lease at KeyArena under friendly questioning from team attorney Brad Keller, and didn't specify his mistakes.
Bennett suggested he misunderstood the region's political climate. But he also testified he simply wasn't willing to commit to the things his local advisers told him would be necessary to win government support for a new arena and keep the Sonics in town: Make an out-of-pocket contribution toward the construction, and agree to cover cost overruns.
The 48-year-old Oklahoma business tycoon, who received calls of "Liar!" when he entered federal court Monday, also said he has regretted his failure "to integrate more completely with the people" of Seattle -- it's to the point "I can't go to games."
Raptors
Toronto bought out the contract of Jorge Garbajosa, the Spanish forward whose career with the Raptors was cut short by a broken leg. He had one year and $4.25 million left on his contract.
First Published: June 19, 2008, 4:00 a.m.