The NBA and ESPN have picked A&M/Interscope act Black Eyed Peas' ..."Let's Get It Started" ..for promo spots for the NBA playoffs.

The song's original version, "Let's Get Retarded," is on the band's Elephunk. That title has sold 1 million copies in the United States since its release last summer, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

For the commercials, the Peas' Will.i.am provided four extra versions of the song, including one themed around the 24-second shot clock, tailored to the playoffs.

For Will.i.am, the NBA promotion is as good as being a starting player in the league. "This means we made it. Just to be affiliated with Kareem, it's great. Aside from it being a cool launchpad for our single, this alone is big."

Altering the lyrics did not bother him, in part because he already had revised them for a new edition of the song.

"The song is about letting go of inhibitions and getting started, and the are about letting the game get started. It's the same idea."

In terms of exposure for the new version of the song, the impressions will be in the hundreds of millions. The 30-second spots will air no fewer than 2,000 times during the six-week playoff period on ESPN's four networks, according to Ashley Smith, director of local marketing and publicity for ESPN.

"It could conceivably help us sell another million records and establish this band like an OutKast," says Ron Fair, president of A&M.

The four spots feature the band, guest star Carlos Santana and a boys choir. Also appearing in the spots are legendary players including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton and ABC sitcom stars Jim Belushi and George Lopez.

The spots begin airing April 12 and will run through the NBA finals in June.