Trouble Catching the Playoffs? - There's an App for That - Duh

Last year I bought cable for NBA playoffs, and then it took me 6 months of watching commercials and mind garbage before getting fed up and canceling -- so I chose not to go there this year. But I wanted to follow the playoffs somehow. So when the first round started, I downloaded the NBA Gametime App for iPhone for $2.99. I love it.

On the free lite version, you can get realtime schedules and scores, which is nice. But with the full version, you get internet-style play-by-play and radio broadcasts from both markets. I love listening to games on the radio -- it hearkens back to when I was a kid listening to the St. Louis Blues hockey on the radio under my bed (I'd always fall asleep during the 2nd Zamboni).

Nowadays I can listen to NBA at night if there's a good game, and the phone will recharge by my bed from now until June. Late games aren't such a drag for midwesterners this way either. This playoffs I have enjoyed the radio stylings of Portland, Utah, Denver, Dallas, San Antone, Chicago, Boston, Miami, Milwaukee and ATL sprinkled in when I have a few minutes cooking dinner or whatever. If you don't like the announcer, you can switch to the other feed.

Last night's Milwaukee ATL tilt was fun because Milwaukee's announcer was practically out of his seat with excitement, then I'd lose the feed for a minute and switch over to ATL, where the announcer was relaying the events in a tone reserved for reading instruction-manuals, with the cold inevitability of a Titanic closing on an iceberg. As the final minutes unfolded last night, he knew the ship was going down.

JLev has pointed out that I probably spent my cable savings on beer, catching a few must-watch games at the bar. That may be true, but the iPhone app radio connection has been a fun new way to take it all in. There are also video recaps in the morning for the bus ride to work. So far, the data plan doesn't spoil me as much as a cable plan, I guess. For anyone else that has trouble catching the playoffs, I'd recommend it. (Tonight though, I plan to seek out a Black Butte Porter and some TNT for those Game 6s!)