The NBA has the framework of an agreement in place with Amazon Prime Video that will make the streaming giant one of the league’s primary homes beginning in 2025/26, reports Andrew Marchand of The Athletic.
According to Marchand, Prime Video is on track to secure the rights to “significant” regular season and postseason games, including possibly some conference finals. The expectation is that Amazon’s deal with the NBA will cover at least 10 years.
ESPN/ABC (Disney) also appears set to return as an NBA rights holder, according to Marchand, who says the NBA Finals are expected to remain on ABC through the next TV deal. Like Amazon’s deal, a new agreement between ESPN/ABC and the league will likely run for at least a decade beginning in ’25/26, Marchand adds.
As has been previously reported, after years of having deals in place with two major rights holders (ESPN/ABC and TNT Sports), the league is looking to expand to accommodate at least three media rights holders in these negotiations. So the fact that TNT Sports (Warner Bros. Discovery) doesn’t yet have a deal lined up doesn’t mean that the network won’t continue to broadcast the NBA beyond the 2024/25 season.
However, unless the NBA reaches deals with four separate partners – which is a possibility – TNT Sports may end up going head-to-head with NBC (and its streaming service Peacock) for the final package of games, per Marchand. Warner Bros. Discovery would have the right of first refusal, Marchand notes, but NBC could try to structure a deal in a way that would make its offer difficult to match.
As existing rights holders, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery had an exclusive negotiating window with the NBA this spring, but that window closed on Monday night, opening the door for the league to talk to Amazon, NBC, and other potential partners.
Although Amazon and ESPN/ABC have serious momentum toward deals with the NBA, there are still some details to work out, according to Marchand, who points out that the existing TV packages will have to be reduced slightly to make room for the incoming third partner. For example, in one scenario that has been discussed, ESPN’s per-season inventory would be cut back from about 100 games to 80ish, executives briefed on the talks tell The Athletic.
The NBA’s current nine-year, $24 billion media rights deal runs through the 2024/25 season, so there’s no urgency to complete the new agreement in the immediate future, but it sounds like it will likely be done sooner rather than later. Previous reports suggested the league would likely have a new media rights deal in place by this summer.
I hope they dont do what MLB and NFL did where the only way tot watch these games in on Prime. The local markets should be able to watch on their RSN
They will or they will have all the “Big” match ups.
All involved here are going to realize harshly, after the ink is dry, that basketball fans ain’t gonna pay for the product like football fans. Especially for a regular season product that is all kinds of horrible right now. This will ultimately not go well for all involved.
TNT only exists to show NBA games on cable television. Cord Cutting from cable television continues at record numbers.
Gamblers don’t have to watch games. Casual fans who gamble. Ain’t gonna pay to watch regular season games. The NBA is going to lose half it’s viewership with a paid product. Netflix wins this battle.
I don’t watch any TV except Jeopardy, the NBA, an occasional MLB game and what I can of the World Series but looking at TNT’s television lineup it seems they do well with AEW and the NHL especially the NHL playoffs.
The only way the NBA is going to lose that much on the viewership front is if they go through with the deal with Peacock. Amazon would be a huge pickup. It’s second only to Netflix as far as existing subscribers and is available in over 200 countries. If they keep Warner Discovery(TNT) and Disney/Hulu/ESPN they should be fine.
Thanks for letting us all know.
Absolutely. I’m thinking that congratulations are in order. Pretty amazing accomplishment.
Just sail the seven seas for free. Amazon doesn’t need my money.
Didn’t TNT just sign the crew to long deals? They have to secure some rights. They only work regular season Tuesday and then Thursday when NFL is done.
The ESPN pregame group is unwatchable. If we lose out on the TNT crew the NBA is choosing to actively make the product worse.
I refuse to watch anything basketball related on espn. Bunch of yes men, puppets with hidden agenda’s.
I haven’t watched a pregame show in like 20 years
Stephen A is the most annoying person in all of sports and ruins pre-game post-game and halftimes of every sport. TNT is legends that know the game in Shaq, Barkley and Kenny the jet.
The NBA would be very stupid to end business with TNT
Does TNT even have a business without the NBA??? Is there any reason to watch TNT if they are not showing an NBA game???
Myopic much?
NBA, NFL, MLB and Monday night hockey,
amazon going for it all except women’s sports
I bet Indiana Fever games will be a catch. Maybe they partner with them.
Did anybody really think the 65 game rule to be eligible for postseason awards had anything to do with the players???
Folks, it was mostly about the “Media Rights” deal. ESPN and the other media partners are not writing fat checks to have stars not play. Thus, 65 game rule if you want a postseason award.
No, there wasn’t anyone who thought that.
Barry I hate to ruin your day but the only reason the NBA exists is for the league and owners to make money. No one is organizing basketball for fun, or the love of the sport.
We’re all excited you managed to crack the case of the 65 game rule though. A real slam dunk.
And here we are; the confirmation that sports is now just content, as is everything else now…well, good for them financially, but thanks again for killing the only things in the world I ever cared about.
Any playoff games, especially conference finals being effected is totally ridiculous, but it is what it is at this point. Hopefully at least bareable TV personalities and broadcasters are utilized, and we don’t lose inside the NBA either…
If NBC does games, I’d love to see Pat Riley on commentary again, if he were ever willing to teach the masses
TV Rights and monies over viewership…again