Or at least the timing did.

It was the perfect opportunity, in front of a packed crowd at the season launch at Melbourne’s Crown Palladium on Monday. 

This was a statement of intent, adding to the glitz of an event which Hawks coach Rob Beveridge likened to a ‘’rock concert’’.

Kestelman stood before the basketball faithful and declared the boost of free-to-air coverage on Sundays, to add to every game live on Fox Sports this season.

“We have a vision to make the NBL a premier sport in Australia and an unrivalled option for entertainment during the summer, and take great confidence from the fact that Nine shares our vision,” Kestelman said in a statement.

“Our agreement provides for coverage of our Sunday afternoon games throughout the season, as well as a number of finals, and has the built-in flexibility to allow for timeslot changes from next year when the Brisbane Bullets re-join the competition and the league continues to develop”.

The only problem was, no-one seemed to know the details. The television guide continued to promote WIN’s coverage of the 2004 basketball-themed movie Thunderstruck, involving NBA star Kevin Durant.

Entertainment value, sure, but Hawks fans want their team live on free-to-air.

It was only on Friday afternoon, after several uncertain phone calls, when Channel Nine confirmed the Hawks' showdown with Melbourne United will be on their digital channel, Go!.

The exclamation mark isn’t something this column added in for exaggeration, it’s the actual title of the channel.

The sticking point was Nine and WIN’s coverage of the domestic one-day cricket competition, scheduled for sister channel Gem. 

Would the cricket be moved to Nine? Would WIN show NBL on the same channel as Nine? Would it be shown on free-to-air at all this weekend?

The doubt crept in, given some of the ham-fisted past announcements made by the NBL, which is why eventually confirming the Hawks on Go! in round one at 3pm is kind of a big deal.

It’s another huge stride forward for a summer sport determined to match it with the A-League and cricket rivals the Big Bash.

The world game has already tapped into its heartland in Australia, as much as Football South Coast would love to be part of an expanded competition.

Twenty20 cricket is the major threat for attracting the casual fan.

Basketball has gained a handy head start, given the now proven correct decision to build the schedule to be made for TV. Go! Hawks.