Ratings were down 27 percent in game one between the Detroit Pistons and San Antonio Spurs compared to last year?s NBA Finals Game 1.

With a long drawn out pre-game skit from Will Smith that featured bad dancing and an uninterested crowd, a production the warmed-up players were forced to sit through, the game didn?t actually start until 9:23 p.m.

"I was amazed when I heard that Will Smith was performing," the Spurs' Robert Horry said. "I thought it would be at halftime. ...I guess that's part of how they sell the games these days."