And so it continues
My phone rang at 8:30 Sunday morning. I'd been editing for an hour. Eli 19.2 is not known as a weekend early riser, so this was a surprise.
"Dad?"
"What's up, buddy?"
"So I applied to be in the virtual fan grid for the Miami Heat." Those are the digital screens behind the benches and baseline in the NBA playoffs that show about 300 fans per game from their webcams.
"Okay, I see what's coming here," I said.
"I got an email and I'm in for tonight's game against the Celtics," he said, and he burst out laughing.
"I would be surprised, but we both know there's no reason for that."
"I'm not guaranteed to get in, but I'm in the group of people that they choose from."
Of course, he did get in, because him.
Ironically, this game must have had the fewest free throws on that end in NBA history, but it was still great.
Plus, Eli told me that it was a great experience from his end, too. Their host told them to get pots and pans and make noise during free throws, which would get piped into the game. They got to interact with other people in their section, and there were mini-games to play at each television timeout.
It sounds like a genuine effort by the NBA to include fans, which is really impressive. The NBA has been totally great in the playoffs--maybe my favorite season ever, given the quality and pace of the games--and this makes it even better.
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