Media Rights

NBA Seeks To Dismiss Warner Bros. Discovery Lawsuit

August 24th, 2024 at 2:20pm CST by Luke Adams

AUGUST 24: Baxter Holmes of ESPN provides more details on the NBA’s motion for a dismissal, writing that the league is arguing Warner Bros. Discovery attempted to improperly rewrite the terms of Amazon’s offer and then accept those terms.

“(Turner Broadcasting System) chose not to match NBCUniversal’s offer, which would have enabled TBS to continue distributing games via its TNT linear cable network,” the league wrote in its filing. “Instead, TBS purported to match the less-expensive Amazon offer, but only after revising it to include traditional distribution rights and making numerous other substantive changes.

“… TBS made substantive revisions to eight of the Amazon offer’s 27 sections (including revisions to 22 different subsections), changed 11 defined terms that are collectively used roughly 100 separate times, struck nearly 300 words, and added over 270 new words, substantially altering the parties’ rights and obligations in the process.

“… Far from accepting each term of Amazon’s offer, TBS’s revisions constituted a counteroffer that the NBA was free to reject.”

The NBA is asking the court to dismiss the lawsuit with prejudice, which means it couldn’t be refiled in the future, according to Holmes. More information on the league’s arguments can be found within the full ESPN story.

AUGUST 23: The NBA filed a response to Warner Bros. Discovery’s lawsuit in New York’s Supreme Court on Friday, according to Brian Steinberg of Variety, who reports that the league has sought to dismiss the suit.

Warner Bros. Discovery is the parent company of TNT Sports, the NBA’s longtime broadcast partner which didn’t reach an agreement with the league during the latest round of media rights negotiations, losing out to Disney (ESPN/ABC), NBC, and Amazon Prime Video. TNT sought to exercise its matching rights on Amazon’s offer but was rejected by the NBA.

In documents filed on Friday, the league reiterated its belief that WBD/TNT failed to match the terms of Amazon’s offer. According to Steinberg, the NBA specified several ways in which TNT’s offer differed from Amazon’s, including:

Amazon’s deal is for distribution via streaming only, whereas WBD’s bid would include games on both the TNT cable network and the Max streaming service.
Amazon agreed to establish a rights fee escrow account into which it will “deposit and maintain three seasons of rights fee payments on a rolling basis and from which rights fees would automatically be disbursed to the NBA on the agreed-upon payment schedule.” WBD, meanwhile, offered to provide the league with letters of credit as an alternative form of security and to only make them available if the company “failed to make a rights fee payment on a timely basis.” In other words, Amazon’s proposal provides more certainty that payments will be made on time, without the risk of delays.
Amazon has promised to promote NBA games during its widest-reaching sports broadcasts, including Thursday Night Football (NFL). WBD “substituted an obligation to promote the NBA in any major sporting league” distributed on TNT or Max — WBD defines “major sporting league” as including NASCAR and various college sporting events, making it a less valuable commitment than Amazon’s in the NBA’s view, Steinberg explains.

As Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic previously outlined, August 23 was the deadline for the NBA to file its initial response to the lawsuit. Warner Bros. Discovery now has until September 20 to file its opposition, then the league will have until October 2 to respond again.

According to Steinberg, the NBA said in Friday’s filing that it intends to move for dismissal at an October 4 hearing in New York City.

Previous reporting has noted that neither the NBA nor WBD likely wants an extended legal battle in which private conversations could be made public during the discovery process, so a settlement of some sort remains a possibility.

And-Ones: Diamond RSNs, Dragic, Nowtizki, Oppenheimer

August 23rd, 2024 at 8:20pm CST by Luke Adams

Diamond Sports Group – the parent company of the Bally Sports regional networks – announced on Friday that it has reached an agreement with the NBA to continue local broadcasts for 13 teams for the 2024/25 season, according to Evan Drellich and Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic.

Diamond’s agreements, including a deal with the NHL to continue broadcasting nine teams’ games, will need to be approved by a federal bankruptcy judge. That hearing is scheduled for September 3, per Drellich and Vorkunov. While the new deals will only cover the 2024/25 season for now, they could extend beyond that if Diamond gets out of bankruptcy.

Diamond won’t be moving forward on deals with the Pelicans or the Mavericks, according to Friday’s announcement. The Pelicans news was reported earlier this month, with the team making plans to broadcasting its games for free over the air through Gray TV.

The Mavericks’ broadcast plans for the coming season remain unclear. However, The Athletic characterized the split with Dallas as mutual, and an NBA spokesperson told The Dallas Morning News that the Mavs “declined to continue distributing their games” through Diamond/Bally Sports, so it sounds like the club has a new plan in the works.

The 13 teams whose games will continue to air on Diamond’s regional sports networks in 2024/25 are the Hawks, Hornets, Cavaliers, Pistons, Pacers, Clippers, Grizzlies, Heat, Bucks, Timberwolves, Thunder, Magic, and Spurs.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Saturday’s farewell game in honor of Goran Dragic‘s retirement – dubbed “The Night of the Dragon,” will stream on the NBA App at 2:00 pm Eastern time, the league announced today (Twitter link). Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic will team up as part of “Team Luka,” while Dragic’s roster features former MVP Steve Nash. Eurohoops published the full rosters on Twitter.
Speaking to reporters ahead of Dragic’s farewell game, Dirk Nowitzki suggested that he would like to continue working in basketball in some capacity, but he doesn’t plan on becoming a full-time coach for any team. “I don’t think I see coaching in my future,” Nowitzki said, per Cesare Milanti of Eurohoops. “Things could change very quickly, but I don’t see myself as a team coach. I see more myself as an individual coach.”
Former Bucks assistant Josh Oppenheimer has accepted a job on Porter Moser‘s coaching staff at Oklahoma, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). Milwaukee parted ways with Oppenheimer – who had a “close working relationship” with Giannis Antetokounmpo, according to Wojnarowski – back in May as Doc Rivers made changes to his staff ahead of his first full season with the Bucks.

And-Ones: Guy, WBD Lawsuit, 21-And-Under Players, More

August 9th, 2024 at 9:52pm CST by Luke Adams

Former Virginia star Kyle Guy, who was the 55th overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft, is returning to his alma mater as an athlete development mentor and special assistant, according to a press release from the program.

“C’ville I am back!” Guy said in a statement. “I want to sincerely thank Coach (Tony) Bennett and (athletic director) Carla Williams for trusting me with the opportunity to come back and begin this next chapter of my life. This was not an easy decision for me, but knowing how much love I have for this culture and community made it very clear where I should be with my family. I’m beyond excited to help this team and the University in any way needed.”

Guy, who will turn 27 on Sunday, spent three years in the NBA from 2019-22, appearing in a total of 53 regular season games for the Kings and Heat and averaging 3.1 points in 8.1 minutes per contest. He spent the past two seasons playing internationally in Spain and Greece. However, his new role and his accompanying statement suggest that he’s prepared to put his playing career behind him.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

The judge who is overseeing Warner Bros. Discovery’s lawsuit against the NBA has given the league until August 23 to respond, according to Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic (Twitter link). If the NBA moves to dismiss the suit, WBD would have until September 20 to file its opposition, then the league would have until October 2 to respond again. The lawsuit was a response to the league rejecting TNT’s right to match Amazon’s offer for NBA media rights.
James L. Edwards III, Kelly Iko and Will Guillory of The Athletic conducted a 24-player mock draft of NBA players who were 21 or younger at the end of the 2023/24 season. Victor Wembanyama, unsurprisingly, was the top pick, followed by Paolo Banchero, Alperen Sengun, Brandon Miller, and Dereck Lively.
The rest of the basketball world hasn’t caught up to the United States, but a down-to-the-wire semifinal game against Serbia at the Olympics was a reminder that the gap is narrowing, writes Seerat Sohi of The Ringer. Sohi notes that France, led by Wembanyama and youngsters like Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr, Tidjane Salaun, and projected 2025 lottery pick Nolan Traore, could be a future powerhouse, while Canada is still on the rise despite a disappointing 2024 outcome.

Charles Barkley Won’t Retire In 2025, Will Remain With TNT Sports

August 6th, 2024 at 12:37pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran NBA analyst Charles Barkley, who previously stated that he planned to retire after the 2024/25 season, has reversed course and will remain on with TNT Sports for “many years to come,” the cable network announced today in a statement (Twitter link via Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News).

TNT is expected to lose its NBA broadcast rights after the 2024/25 season, but Barkley remains under contract with Warner Bros. Discovery (TNT’s parent company) well beyond that, having signed a 10-year, $210MM contract in 2022. He has stated that he didn’t intend to accept a pay cut, so it sounds like TNT plans to honor that contract.

“I love my TNT Sports family,” Barkley said in a statement. “My #1 priority has been and always will be our people and keeping everyone together for as long as possible. We have the most amazing people, and they are the best at what they do. I’m looking forward to continuing to work with them both on the shows we currently have and new ones we develop together in the future. This is the only place for me.

“I have to say … I’ve been impressed by the leadership team who is fighting hard and have been aggressive in adding new properties to TNT Sports, which I am very excited about. I appreciate them and all of my colleagues for their continued support, and most importantly our fans. I’m going to give my all as we keep them entertained for years to come.”

An NBA broadcast partner for several decades, TNT was unable to reach an agreement in the latest round of negotiations as the league struck deals with Disney (ABC/ESPN), NBC, and Amazon. TNT attempted to exercise its matching rights on Amazon’s offer, but was rejected by the NBA, which has led to a lawsuit from WBD.

Barring an unexpected development, the 2024/25 season will likely be TNT’s last as an NBA broadcaster. The popular Inside The NBA studio show, which stars Barkley, Kenny Smith, Shaquille O’Neal, and Ernie Johnson, may also be entering its final season. Barkley said last month that he was open to listening to pitches from Disney, NBC, and Amazon and was still leaning toward retirement, but has now reaffirmed his commitment to TNT for the next several years.

While TNT will likely no longer have NBA broadcasts beyond 2025, the network airs March Madness games and features Barkley on its studio show during the NCAA tournament. It also has the rights to several other sports and events, as TNT Sports Chairman & CEO Luis Silberwasser noted in a statement of his own.

“Charles is one of the best and most beloved sportscasters in the history of television,” Silberwasser said. “I know I speak for all members of the TNT Sports family when I say we are incredibly thrilled to share this mutual commitment to continue showcasing Charles’ one-of-a-kind talents and entertain fans well into the future.

“We continue to add to the breadth and depth of our sports portfolio — including new properties in the College Football Playoffs, Roland-Garros, NASCAR, BIG EAST college basketball, Mountain West football, among others — and it’s fantastic to have Charles for this journey as we develop new content ideas and shows for our fans.”

Warner Bros. Discovery Sues NBA; Barkley Listening To ESPN, NBC, Amazon

July 26th, 2024 at 3:04pm CST by Luke Adams

Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of TNT Sports, has filed a lawsuit against the NBA, alleging that the league is in breach of contract after it refused to recognize TNT’s right to match Amazon’s offer for NBA broadcast rights, reports Baxter Holmes of ESPN.

The lawsuit was filed in New York Supreme Court. Daniel Wallach of The Athletic (Twitter link) shares a copy of the summons, which states that the NBA has 20 days to respond.

TNT Sports issued a statement confirming it has taken legal action against the NBA (Twitter link via Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com):

“Given the NBA’s unjustified rejection of our matching of a third-party offer, we have taken legal action to enforce our rights. We strongly believe this is not just our contractual right, but also in the best interest of fans who want to keep watching our industry-leading NBA content with the choice and flexibility we offer them through our widely distributed WBD video-first distribution platforms – including TNT and Max.”

According to Holmes, NBA spokesperson Mike Bass responded to the suit by stating, “Warner Bros. Discovery’s claims are without merit and our lawyers will address them.”

A longtime broadcasting partner of the NBA, TNT Sports was given some form of matching rights in their current deal with the league. However, we don’t know the exact terms of those rights or how they’d apply in this case, given that Amazon’s agreement with the league will feature different methods of distribution and a different set of games than TNT’s previous deal. The lawsuit could lead to a settlement between Warner Bros. Discovery and the league, either in the form of other NBA rights or financial compensation.

Meanwhile, Charles Barkley – an analyst on TNT’s popular Inside The NBA studio show – issued a statement calling into question whether the NBA was ever negotiating with the network in good faith (Twitter link via Bleacher Report).

“Clearly the NBA has wanted to break up with us from the beginning. I’m not sure TNT ever had a chance,” Barkley said. “TNT matched the money, but the league knows Amazon and these tech companies are the only ones willing to pay for the rights when they double in the future. The NBA didn’t want to piss them off. It’s a sad day when owners and commissioners choose money over the fans. It just sucks.”

While Barkley has previously stated that he intends to retire as a broadcaster when TNT’s deal expires after the 2024/25 season, he’s drawing serious interest from the NBA’s other media partners – ESPN/ABC, NBC, and Amazon – according to Michael McCarthy of Front Office Sports, who says that both ESPN and Amazon Prime Video are eyeing the entire Inside the NBA panel (Barkley, Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, and Shaquille O’Neal).

Speaking on Friday to Andrew Marchand of The Athletic and Dan Patrick of The Dan Patrick Show (Twitter video link), Barkley confirmed that he’s been open to pitches from other networks, saying he’d be “stupid” not to listen, especially if TNT doesn’t fully pay out the rest of his 10-year, $210MM contract with the network. However, he said his plan for now is still to retire.

While Marchand’s sources say that one of the league’s other TV/streaming partners could obtain the rights to the Inside the NBA studio show and simply let them continue working out of their current Atlanta studio, Barkley doesn’t believe that Johnson would leave TNT. He said he hasn’t spoken to Smith or O’Neal about the possibility of extending the show beyond 2025 on a new network, telling Marchand that the plan is to “go out with a bang” next season.

Barkley added that he’s not optimistic anything will come of TNT’s lawsuit.

“The NBA clearly wanted to break up with us,” he told Marchand. “I don’t want to be in a relationship where I have to sue somebody to be in it. That makes zero sense. If you have to sue somebody to stay in a relationship, do you think that is a healthy relationship?”

NBA Rejects TNT’s Proposal To Match Amazon’s Media Rights Offer

July 24th, 2024 at 5:49pm CST by Luke Adams

5:49pm: TNT has promised to take “appropriate action” in a statement regarding the media rights deal (Twitter link).

“We have matched the Amazon offer, as we have a contractual right to do, and do not believe the NBA can reject it,” the network states. “In doing so, they are rejecting the many fans who continue to show their unwavering support for our best-in-class coverage, delivered through the full combined reach of WBD’s video-first distribution platforms including TNT, home to our four-decade partnership with the league, and Max, our leading streaming service.

We think they have grossly misinterpreted our contractual rights with respect to the 2025/26 season and beyond, and we will take appropriate action. We look forward, however, to another great season of the NBA on TNT and Max including our iconic Inside the NBA.”

3:42pm: Just two days after TNT Sports announced it had submitted paperwork to the league office exercising its matching rights on Amazon’s new media rights deal with the NBA, the league has responded by rejecting TNT’s proposal.

“Warner Bros. Discovery’s most recent proposal did not match the terms of Amazon Prime Video’s offer and, therefore, we have entered into a long-term arrangement with Amazon,” the league’s statement reads.

“Throughout these negotiations, our primary objective has been to maximize the reach and accessibility of our games for our fans. Our new arrangement with Amazon supports this goal by complementing the broadcast, cable and streaming packages that are already part of our new Disney and NBCUniversal arrangements. All three partners have also committed substantial resources to promote the league and enhance the fan experience.

“We are grateful to Turner Sports for its award-winning coverage of the NBA and look forward to another season of the NBA on TNT.”

This process is playing out as expected so far. As a longtime NBA broadcast partner, Warner Bros. Discovery (TNT’s parent company) was given some form of matching rights in its previous agreement with the league. However, the belief was that the NBA wouldn’t recognize those rights when TNT matched Amazon’s offer, given the differences between the two companies’ distribution methods and the sort of reach they can offer.

TNT could simply accept the NBA’s decision and back down. However, the expectation is that the company will strongly consider a legal challenge in response to the NBA’s ruling. That could result in an in-court battle over Amazon’s package or perhaps a financial settlement for WBD.

In any case, it seems more certain than ever that the NBA will move forward without TNT Sports as a partner beginning in 2025/26, when its new media rights deals go into effect. That would mean the 2024/25 season will be the last one that features national games and the popular “Inside the NBA” studio show on the network.

The league issued a separate press release officially announcing its agreements with Disney, NBCUniversal, and Amazon Prime Video.

NBA Announces Details Of Media Deals With Disney, NBC, Amazon

July 24th, 2024 at 4:21pm CST by Luke Adams

After announcing that it has rejected TNT’s proposal to match Amazon’s media rights offer, the NBA formally confirmed the renewal of its broadcast agreement with Disney (ESPN/ABC) and its new deals with NBCUniversal (NBC/Peacock) and Amazon (Prime Video).

The new media deals will cover 11 years, beginning with the 2025/26 season and running through ’35/36. While the league’s announcement doesn’t share any financial details, Andrew Marchand of The Athletic pegs the value of the agreements at about $77 billion in total, with Disney paying approximately $2.6 billion per year, NBC at $2.5 billion per year, and Amazon around $1.93 billion annually.

The NBA states that the new deals will significantly increase the number of games available on broadcast television, bumping that number to about 75 per season. All national games will also be available on streaming services (Prime Video, Peacock, or ESPN’s forthcoming service).

Here are some additional details from the league:

Disney:

Disney will broadcast 80 regular season games per year, including 20+ on ABC and up to 60 on ESPN. ABC’s games will air on Saturdays and Sundays, with ESPN’s airing on Wednesdays and some Fridays.
ABC and ESPN will broadcast about 18 games in the first two rounds of the playoffs each season.
In 10 of the 11 seasons in the agreement, ABC and ESPN will air one of the two conference finals.
ABC will continue to air the NBA Finals.
ABC/ESPN will continue to air the draft, the draft lottery, and half of the Summer League games.

NBCUniversal:

NBCUniversal will distribute as many as 100 regular season games per year. More than half of those games will be broadcast on NBC on Sunday and Tuesday nights. Peacock will stream Monday night doubleheaders throughout the regular season.
The All-Star Game and All-Star Saturday Night (including the dunk contest and three-point competition) will air on NBC.
NBC and/or Peacock will air about 28 games in the first two rounds of the playoffs each season.
In six of the 11 seasons in the agreement, NBC will broadcast one of the two conference finals. They’ll rotate with Amazon beginning in 2025/26.

Amazon:

Amazon will distribute 66 regular season games per year on Prime Video. Those will include Thursday doubleheaders (beginning in January), Friday doubleheaders, some Saturday games, and at least one game on Black Friday.
Prime Video will broadcast the quarterfinals, semifinals, and final of the NBA Cup (in-season tournament).
Prime Video will broadcast all six games in the play-in tournament.
Prime Video will air approximately a third of the games in the first two rounds of the playoffs each season.
In six of the 11 seasons in the agreement, Amazon will air one of the two conference finals. They’ll rotate with NBC beginning in 2025/26.
- Note: Because NBC and Amazon will each broadcast six conference finals, there will be one year in which they each get one and Disney doesn’t.
Prime Video will air half of the Summer League games.

A lawsuit from TNT Sports – a longtime NBA broadcast partner and the odd man out in this round of negotiations – is possible after the NBA rejected TNT’s right to match Amazon’s deal.

However, according to Marchand, neither side would want an extended legal battle in which private conversations could be made public during the discovery process. That means a lawsuit may lead to a settlement, either in the form of other NBA rights or financial compensation.

TNT Sports Submits Matching Paperwork To NBA

July 22nd, 2024 at 3:09pm CST by Luke Adams

TNT Sports issued a statement today confirming that it is making an effort to retain its NBA rights beyond the 2024/25 season by exercising its matching rights (Twitter link). A previous report indicated that Warner Bros. Discovery (TNT’s parent company) intended to match the media rights package that Amazon had negotiated with the league.

“We’re proud of how we have delivered for basketball fans by providing best-in-class coverage throughout our four-decade partnership with the NBA,” TNT’s statement reads. “In an effort to continue our long-standing partnership, during both exclusive and non-exclusive negotiation periods, we acted in good faith to present strong bids that were fair to both parties.

“Regrettably, the league notified us of its intention to accept other offers for the games in our current rights package, leaving us to proceed under the matching rights provision, which is an integral part of our current agreement and the rights we have paid for under it.

“We have reviewed the offers and matched one of them. This will allow fans to keep enjoying our unparalleled coverage, including the best live game productions in the industry and our iconic studio shows and talent, while building on our proven 40-year commitment for many more years.

“Our matching paperwork was submitted to the league today. We look forward to the NBA executing our new contract.”

Despite the confident tone of TNT’s statement, this process won’t be as simple as an NBA team matching an offer sheet on a restricted free agent in order to retain the player.

The league is expected to argue that Warner Bros. Discovery can’t simply match Amazon’s offer due to the differences in the two companies’ distribution methods. Amazon is a streaming giant, whereas TNT is a cable network. While WBD does have a streaming service of its own, that service (Max) reportedly has about half of the subscribers that Amazon Prime Video does.

Amazon’s package of games also isn’t the same as the one TNT is losing. It reportedly includes playoff contests, including one conference final every other year. It also features the in-season tournament (NBA Cup), as well as regular season games on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. It’s reportedly worth $1.8 billion annually.

There has been speculation that TNT’s decision to match could lead to a lawsuit, a financial settlement for WBD, or possibly a newly negotiated fourth broadcast package.

Amazon is one of the three broadcast partners with whom the NBA negotiated a new media rights deal. The other two are Disney (ESPN/ABC) and NBC. The new deals will begin at the start of the 2025/26 season.

And-Ones: Media Rights, Seattle, Vegas, 2025 Draft, Offseason

July 19th, 2024 at 8:50pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA’s new media rights agreements with Disney (ESPN/ABC), NBC, and Amazon won’t give those partners matching rights during the next round of negotiations in 11 years, industry sources tell Mike Vorkunov and Andrew Marchand of The Athletic. For instance, if the NBA were to reach an agreement on a rights deal with Netflix in 2035, Amazon wouldn’t be given the right to match Netflix’s offer.

The league presumably didn’t want to deal with that complication again in its next media rights negotiation period, given how Warner Bros. Discovery’s matching rights have affected this year’s talks. Warner Bros. Discovery (the parent company of TNT Sports) reportedly intends to exercise its matching rights on Amazon’s new package of games. The league, in turn, is expected to challenge WBD’s interpretation of those rights, which could result in a legal battle.

The NBA’s new media deals will go into effect at the start of the 2025/26 season and will run through ’35/36.

We have more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

If Seattle gets a new NBA team in the next round of expansion, the ownership group that controls the NHL’s Seattle Kraken is considered the significant frontrunner, but the bidding for a Las Vegas franchise looks more wide open, according to Randall Williams and Kim Bhasin of Fortune.com, who hears from two sources that the total price tag – including building a new arena – could reach $7 billion. The company that owns the Red Bull brand is among the groups with interest in a Las Vegas team, per Williams and Bhasin.
Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report has published his “way-too-soon” mock draft for 2025, with Duke forward Cooper Flagg at No. 1, followed by Rutgers guard Dylan Harper. Baylor wing V.J. Edgecombe, Rutgers swingman Ace Bailey, and UNC guard Drake Powell round out Wasserman’s top five.
In an Insider-only story for ESPN.com, Bobby Marks takes a look at each team’s most impactful transaction of the offseason so far and what moves might still be coming before the regular season tips off.

WBD Reportedly Plans To Match Amazon’s Media Rights Package

July 17th, 2024 at 5:11pm CST by Arthur Hill

The NBA’s Board of Governors ratified the league’s new media rights deal Tuesday night, according to Tom Friend of Sports Business Journal, but the process is still far from over.

Sources tell Friend that Warner Bros. Discovery — the owner of TNT Sports, a longtime NBA media partner — is expected to match the “C” package given to Amazon, which could set off a contentious legal battle. Commissioner Adam Silver hinted at that possibility in a press conference Tuesday night when he said work remains to be done “with existing partners.”

The next step will be for the league to give WBD written copies of the three contracts. Their annual value was originally reported as $2.6 billion for ESPN, $2.5 billion for NBC Universal and $1.8 billion for Amazon, although Friend hears the current numbers are slightly higher. That begins a five-day timeframe in which WBD CEO David Zaslav has the option to match the deal with either NBC or Amazon.

Friend’s sources say that Zaslav views Amazon’s streaming deal — which includes alternating conference finals, a Thursday package, Friday or Saturday games, the NBA Cup (in-season tournament), early-round playoffs and international rights — as the most fiscally responsible. Friend adds that WBD plans to match Amazon with its own streaming service, Max, while running simulcasts on TNT.

According to Friend’s sources, the NBA will likely argue that Max doesn’t possess nearly the same reach as Amazon, which has 200 million worldwide customers compared to about 100 million for Max. Friend notes that the league’s stance could lead to a lawsuit, a financial settlement for WBD, or possibly a fourth broadcast package.

Friend reports that the Board of Governors approved the media rights package in a 29-1 vote, with the only opposition coming from the Knicks, which isn’t surprising given owner James Dolan’s public criticism of the deal and the NBA’s revenue sharing policies.

Sources told Friend that the three-hour meeting in which the rights deal was approved was “a breeze,” and owners received a memo Tuesday informing them that its total value has increased to $77 billion over 11 years. The price tag had many owners questioning whether WBD can really afford to match to match the Amazon bid, Friend adds, noting that the company laid off 1,000 employees this week after similar cutbacks in 2022 and 2023.

Friend points out that streaming has become an increasingly popular option in sports television, and the NBA appears to want to get involved. His sources say that cable TV wasn’t mentioned at all during the BOG meeting or by Silver at his session with reporters.

Friend also cites speculation that NBA TV, which is produced in Atlanta by Turner Sports, could eventually be moved to a studio in New York or New Jersey. His sources indicate that Silver wants the league to continue owning the network regardless of where it’s based.

Load More Posts