Basketball and boxing fans may have to make a tough decision between watching the historic Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao fight and the Clippers-Spurs playoff game. The good news is the two guys fighting are basketball fans, too.
Mayweather vs. Pacquiao start time could be delayed by NBA Playoffs
Manny Pacquiao has delayed the start of one of his fights to watch basketball before -- and he might have to again Saturday night.
Read next: Read our Pacquiao vs. Mayweather recap.
After the Clippers’ Game 6 win Thursday night, one of the most thrilling first-round series in recent memory is headed to a decisive seventh game. That matchup is set to tip at 8 p.m ET on Saturday. Mayweather-Pacquiao could begin as early as 11 p.m. ET, with HBO and Showtime only putting two undercards on the fight to ensure the best start time for the Fight of the Century. If Game 7 goes to overtime -- or the undercards go quickly -- there could be a conflict.
But there’s precedent here. In 2012, Pacquiao’s team guaranteed he wouldn’t fight before the end of Game 7 between the Celtics and Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals:
We will not begin the Pacquiao-Bradley main event fight until the Celtics and the Heat finish their playoff game. Now Manny, the Heat, the Celtics, and sports fans watching the basketball game won’t have to make a choice between events -- they will be able to watch both.
This wasn’t a courtesy to fans: Pacquiao, a longtime Celtics fan and honorary member of the team, presumably wanted to watch the game. And Floyd Mayweather is a hoops fan, too -- remember that the reason this fight came together is because the two happened to both have courtside seats at the same Miami Heat game in January.
This game is much earlier in the playoffs than the game that delayed the 2012 fight, but Mayweather’s got a strong connection with the Clippers. He’s often spotted at their games -- he got into a yelling match with a Clippers player at one -- and he even expressed interest in buying the team last year.
There’s no official word on the start time, but it wouldn’t be surprising if the two hoops fans decided to watch what should be a great game before heading out to the ring. (There’s also no official word on when the 5’6 Pacquiao re-begins his strange career as a owner/head coach/player for a team in the Philippines.)
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