Overview
- Responding to questions about rising costs, Silver said fans can consume a “huge amount” of free content and described basketball as a highlights-based sport, a comment that went viral and drew sharp criticism online.
- The NBA begins an 11-year media deal worth roughly $76–77 billion that splits national games among ESPN/ABC, NBC/Peacock, and Amazon Prime Video, adding Tuesday over-the-air nights on NBC, a post–football Sunday night package, and new weekly streams on Peacock and Prime Video.
- Silver said the league does not want to disenfranchise fans with prohibitive price points and cited massive social engagement, with a reported 124 billion season-long views across platforms.
- Following teams now often requires multiple subscriptions, with Forbes estimating about $54 per month for Peacock, Prime Video, and Disney’s services, plus potential regional-sports-network fees of $20–$30 a month and League Pass limitations on live national and local games.
- Mark Cuban acknowledged Silver’s misstep yet defended his broader record on fan issues, and ESPN’s Tim Bontemps reported that Amazon, NBC, and ESPN met this week to discuss coordination for more accessible coverage.