WORTH NOTING ON TV

* TUESDAY

The National Sports Awards (NBC, 8-10 p.m.): Five towering figures in recent American sports history - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Muhammad Ali, Arnold Palmer, Wilma Rudolph, and Ted Williams - are saluted in this special, taped last Sunday at Washington's historic Constitution Hall with an impressive complement of stars from show-business and sports in attendance. Those honored will just have come, in fact, from a White House reception, before the praise and reminiscence begins in this glittery production. * WEDNESDAY

Family Dog (CBS, 8-9 p.m.): Before deciding to watch this series premiere, you probably should ask yourself if you (a) love dogs, (b) love cartoons, and (c) love Steven Spielberg enough to watch virtually anything he attaches his name to, even a show about the distinctly unremarkable adventures of the title character. The new animated program depicts life in a suburban household as seen from a canine perspective. This opener offers back-to-back episodes: The first one finds Family Dog (that's his name) i nnocently seeking a drink of water on a hot day, when the family decides to enter him in a dog show (guess whether the pooch buys the idea). In Episode 2, Family Dog ends up at a zoo facing fearsome creatures. Spielberg is credited as co-creator with Tim Burton and as executive producer with Burton and Dennis Klein.

48 Hours (CBS, 10-11 p.m.): One of the thornier issues of the day - sexual harassment - is examined in this news-magazine show. The troubling and ambiguous aspects of this major problem are looked at from several angles: When does annoying behavior become improper, oppressive, or even illegal? Can the charge of sexual harassment be used unfairly or vindictively? Dan Rather, Erin Moriarity, Phil Jones, and Scott Pelley are the reporters.

Please check local listings, especially for the PBS program.