ESPN is reportedly set to keep the NBA “A” package — and exclusive rights to the NBA Finals — in its new deal with the league.
John Ourand of Puck reported Thursday that ESPN and the NBA are on the verge of a deal in which ESPN would continue to hold the league’s “A” package of games, including exclusive rights to the NBA Finals. The ESPN “A” package would still consist of fewer games than under the current deal, as has been widely expected. Ourand described the sides as having “essentially come to terms.”
Previous reporting indicated that the NBA was seeking to alternate the NBA Finals between ESPN and another broadcast partner. Joe Flint of The Wall Street Journal reported earlier Thursday that Comcast is pursuing rights to the NBA Finals every-other-year for its broadcast network NBC. While the subsequent Puck report would seem to rule that out, it should be noted that — per Ourand — details of negotiations have been in a state of constant flux.
Per Ourand, Warner Bros. Discovery is making progress toward a deal, but not as much as ESPN. Comcast is said to be “aggressively” pursuing a deal for its NBC broadcast network and Peacock streaming service “that would affect WBD the most.” Reading between the lines, it would seem as if the new NBA deals might include NBC or WBD, but not both. While WBD (and ESPN) can match any offer made by a third party, WSJ reported that any new deals could be structured in such a way as to make matching difficult.
The league’s third package of games, which will be drawn from inventory taken from the “A” and “B” packages and may also include local rights, is still expected to go to Amazon. Per the Journal, Google is also a contender. Ourand also mentioned Google as a bidder, but only for the league’s NBA League Pass out-of-market package.
Beyond Amazon and Google, Ourand mentioned Netflix and Apple as remaining in play.
