I don't want to get too geeky about this, but those sites are both database driven and when you have 2,000 people hitting a database simultaneously you can't run on a $200 per month server anymore.

Even the Vegas Summer League website couldn't handle initial demand and had to upgrade shortly after opening. And I am sure that the Eurobasket2005 site (which btw features live updates as on NBA.com) is getting hammered by 10's of thousands of visitors from around the world.