One of my earliest NBA memories is standing in a Muskogee Mazzio’s, gripping an empty plate, and watching Michael Jordan hit a game-winner to beat the Jazz. This was Game 1 of the ’97 Finals. I was 8. Jordan was everywhere, and I was stoked about that. If he was on the TV, well, then, so were my eyes. I had a freshly updated pizza buffet I needed to return to and a knockoff Galaga machine I needed to dominate, but before I wrought havoc on outer space and its many hostiles, I stood leaned against the back of a red pleather booth, stared at a Magnavox hanging in the corner, and watched MJ cross Bryon Russell into history.
The NBA and its broadcast partners at the time had done well to build Jordan up into something mythic. I knew his accomplishments. I knew he was my favorite player. He had already won multiple championships and cemented himself as both the best show in sports and the coolest athlete alive. And so when this shot went up, I felt the same bone-deep certainty that I would later feel when he released his game-winner over Russell in the ’98 Finals. I had never seen Jordan play in person, but based on what my television had shown me, I knew that sure as the sun sets, that shot was going in.
Fast-forward to 2025, and we are in a transitional period for watching the NBA on television. The league's new media rights deal splits national broadcasts among three networks: ESPN, which has been showing NBA games since 2002; NBC, which is back in the game after a 23-year hiatus; and Amazon, which is making its first foray into NBA basketball. TL;DR: Basketball is all over the place. It didn’t want to be tied down, so it blew up its life and now it’s everywhere. Watching the NBA today requires a lot of bopping back and forth from app to app and service to service, so much so that the NBA made an infographic to help the confused.
Watching two new broadcast partners and their interpretations of televised basketball is a reminder that there’s not a lot broken in the presentation of the game itself. There are too many commercials and too many replays. The end of a game takes too long. Reggie Miller talks a lot; he should take a breath. But as for the broad strokes, a camera in an elevated space on one side of the arena, the action moving east and west on your screen, it feels right. Yet a more competitive media landscape has still resulted in something of an arms race, with ESPN, NBC, and Amazon trying to one-up one another to set their talent and their broadcasts apart.
So, just over two weeks into the season, it’s time to take stock of the state of the NBA streaming wars. We'll analyze the presentations of the three primary networks, highlighting each one's cast, its biggest splash, and any other notable details. We’ll talk about what’s working, what’s wonky. We know it’s early. Time moves. Most things change. But basketball games will still be played on the televisions in Mazzio’s this season. Let’s talk about who will be showing them.
NBC/Peacock
Maria Taylor, Carmelo Anthony, Vince Carter, and Tracy McGrady before the game between the Rockets and Thunder on October 21
The Cast
I’m not big into nepotism. It’s not one of my passions. Typically, when confronted with something that has even a whiff of the nep, my primal gut reaction is to roll my eyes. But not all nepotism is bad nepotism. Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher. Andy Milonakis and Shmandy Shmila-Shmakis. Josh Brolin is delightful. So is Mike Golic Jr. So is Noah Eagle. Noah’s dad is Ian Eagle, the now–no. 1 play-by-play man for Amazon’s NBA coverage. And look, Ian Eagle rules. He meets the moment. He puts you there. But in this case, the apple didn’t fall far from the tree. Noah Eagle is steady on the mic for NBC.
NBC’s is pound for pound the coolest NBA studio crew going. Carmelo Anthony, Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady—that’s sunglasses and isos, baby. That’s a good time.
As an aside, I want to give a major “Come on, man, what the hell?” to whoever signed off on using AI to re-create gold-throated legend Jim Fagan’s voice for these broadcasts. Fagan was the voice of the NBA on NBC back during its lobster days. It was very fun to hear him say, “This is the NBA on NBC.” But nostalgia can take you only so far. At a certain point, it becomes perverse. Play new records. Make new legends. We don’t need Robot Fagan out here saying word combinations he was never meant for, words that would make him shudder. “Thunder vs. Pelicans”? To Fagan, this would be gibberish.
‘MJ: Insights to Excellence’
The Splash
An old television on an empty court. The wood is black. The lines are red. A basketball hits the television, and the screen zips to life. The number 23 shines red in the channel box. Michael Jordan just hit his shot on Craig Ehlo. MJ punches the air and pumps his fist. Ehlo hits the deck. I don’t remember where I was when I first saw that shot, but I do know that I thought Jordan had punched him. I was a kid then and small, weaving through a living room, looking up at the television through a forest of arms. My view was more obscure than I wanted it to be, but from where I was standing, the arm swing lined up perfectly with Ehlo’s fall. I thought that Jordan had added injury to insult. My dad told me no, this was not so. He did not punch Ehlo. He just wanted to. The same way he wanted to punch everyone he played against. The same way he wants to punch you and me, and, honestly, Mike, it would be an honor. Be that real rain. Take me out. Anyway, the clips keep coming, each one more iconic than the next. The right-to-left layup over the Lakers in the ’91 Finals. The shrug. Bryon Russell’s worst moment. Jordan, standing before a medley of sad Utahns, holding up six fingers. A gold VI turns into MJ turns into MJ: Insights to Excellence.
Hard to get splashier than the greatest of all time. NBC shelled out to bring Jordan into the broadcast for a sitdown with Mike Tirico. In the first installment, Jordan told a story about shooting a basketball for the first time in years at a house he was renting for the Ryder Cup. A free throw, some kids gathered around as spectators. It was the most nervous he’d been in years.
Tirico: I hope you swished it.
Jordan: Absolutely.
What is Jordan’s reason for doing this? “Pay it forward,” he said. “I have an obligation to the game of basketball. Not financially. I’m OK. I think more or less, as a basketball player, it’s to be able to pass on messages of success and dedication to the game of basketball.”
“The game of basketball.” I’ve done too much damage to my brain to remember where I heard it first, but Michael Jordan loves to say “the game of basketball.” You’ll hardly ever hear a lone “basketball” come out of his mouth. He’s not leaving “basketball” out there naked with nothing to hold on to. And so it is “the game of basketball.” There is something inherently ruminative about the phrase when Jordan says it. It’s language that would usually feel distant, that somehow winds up sounding more intimate and grandiose. He also prefers “the basketball court” to “the court.” The basketball court. The game of basketball. Bit of a mouthful, but I guess it does sound better.
The second Insights to Excellence was about load management. In a stunner, Jordan’s against it. This is a man who knows his brand. He is like a politician in his ability to stay on message and steer the convo to something he wants to talk about. He knows the necessary talking points. It’s not a pull string; there are variations to his approach, but MJ is going to talk about competitiveness, how much he loves the game of basketball, how much he wishes he were still playing. He will talk about being driven, about how he measured himself against the greats. He will talk about how he was, is, and always will be the shit. And I do not blame him. If I were Michael Jordan, you would not hear the end of it. I would walk around with an iPad hanging off several chains. And the hulking necklace would shine like the desert sun, festooned with replica championship rings and golden pendants of my signature shoes. And the iPad would play my highlights.
Thus far, the interviews have really just been one interview, chopped into pieces. I fell in love with basketball in the ’90s. I will watch every one of these. That said, hopefully we’ll get at least one wardrobe change. And hopefully we’ll get his actual opinions on specific aspects of this season’s NBA. If it’s just MJ waxing on about himself, it runs the risk of getting pretty old pretty fast. If Jordan is telling me why he does or does not like what the Rockets are doing on offense, if Jordan is telling me how he would try to deal with a defender like Amen Thompson, that I’m much more into.
NBC signage at the game between the Lakers and Warriors on October 21
The Detail
It might seem like a small thing, but NBC’s decision to air the pregame announcement of the starting lineups is massive. Thundering applause for all involved. Make the games feel special. Make them events. Make them grand. Set a stage. A good start is a good start. There is also the matter of NBC’s desk looking like a speedboat. This is a good way for things to look. NBC/Peacock has the second-best score bug going right now. Quality fonts, sleek design. The little pulse squiggles between the team’s point total and logo are unnecessary, but it’s fine.
Everything works except for the silver peacock. I don’t understand what we’re doing here. You’re sitting on gold like the fully plumed Technicolor NBC peacock, and you go and make it gray and cold. This is not an inviting peacock. This is a peacock who looks past you when they’re talking to you, trying to spot someone more important at the party. This is a snooty peacock. His father’s great-grandfather invented concrete, and now the family owns Corpus Christi, the Rangers, and half of Dallas. I don’t want to have a beer with this peacock. It has no sense of humor. It looks like a hateful lamp. Put the rainbow there, and make the whole thing pop.
The Result
It’s been an all-out full-court press of ’90s nostalgia for those of us who remember what it was like to watch the NBA in that era. It has been very effective. It has to be mentioned that “Roundball Rock” has returned, and gimme the ball because I’m gonna dunk it. But NBC needs to be careful not to lean too far into nostalgia and rely too much on the past. It’s fun to reminisce about cool shit you already know, but life is also about learning new things. As a viewer, it’s been exciting to see them lightly experiment with the form in new ways that don’t take away from the visual experience of watching the game. There’s been a little technological escalation. What they’re doing with Noah Eagle, Austin Rivers, Robbie Hummel, and “On the Bench” is a fun swing, a cool concept that they’ve executed well. Maria Taylor’s a star. She’s been a star. The seeds of something fun, beyond just replaying ’90s hits, are here.
Amazon
Blake Griffin, Dirk Nowitzki, and Steve Nash at the unveiling of Prime Video’s new NBA on Prime studio
The Cast
Dirk Nowitzki on a couch—big dog, my fault. I did not know you had it like that. I had seen you sit on the bench, at the podium, and on top of Mark Cuban, but I did not know you were one of the greatest unwinders of the 21st century. This is an elite sitter. Sometimes they make Dirk sit in a chair, and it’s bullshit. It’s still generational sitting, but it’s not the same. The birds don’t sing. It cannot compare to the experience of watching him sit on a couch. Nowitzki pours himself into the corner of the couch, reclines without a recliner, one wing spread along the back, the other resting on the arm. You see him there, and it’s immediately clear: He’s been sitting on couches his whole life. He’s a natural sitter, so at home on the sofa, the vibe’s almost serene. Look how he’s sitting, how chill he looks. Look at his hands. You see how he has used one of the couch pillows as a place to rest his hand and further enhance his relaxation?
This is really sophisticated, high-level stuff, and he’s pulling it off like it’s nothing. It’s electric television. We’re better for it.
Blake Griffin’s funny. Not funny for an athlete. He’s just funny. What’s more, he knows what he’s talking about. He just needs more time in front of the camera to find his rhythm. The more they use him, the better.
Kevin Harlan is my favorite announcer. He’s the announcer who acts the most like I think I would if I were an announcer. He will stand at the announcer desk. He will point. He will [happy growl]. He will [euphoric shriek]. His narration has what so many play-by-play people lack: thrill. Harlan’s always ready to play, always ready to be wowed, always ready to punctuate a play with his unique carnival barkage. He knows when and how to go nuts. He’s got a voice made of pearls, and he elevates every moment he’s in. I listen to him describe a squirrel loose on a football field, and I hear someone in a state of ecstasy. Someone alive in his dreams.
The Splash
Amazon’s biggest splash is its new studio show. The network is leaning into its personalities’ personalities, and it’s got something good going. There’s something to the combo. Taylor Rooks was born for this. She, Nowitzki, Griffin, these are great hangs. Udonis Haslem has strong opinions and enjoys sharing them. He’s at home in the midst of confrontation. And it’s not just chemistry here—they’re trying to educate, dig into some on-court concepts on the little court at the studio. Steve Nash will walk you through what the offense and the defense are doing during a pick-and-roll. And we get to see big dudes in nice clothes walking through plays, which is always one of the best things to see. When is this not exciting? This is how we get Andrew Whitworth picking Griffin up. There should be more of this. We should encourage it, as a society. Big guys should pick each other up all the time.
Kevin Harlan, Candace Parker, and Dwayne Wade before the Lakers and Timberwolves game on October 24
The Detail
It was the fourth night of the NBA season, and Hall of Famer and Amazon analyst Candace Parker strolled onto the screen in a tan double-breasted Adidas Gucci suit. She was sandwiched between Dwyane Wade and Harlan, and she blew these dudes off the screen. These aren’t slouches, either. Wade and Harlan are Fashion Hall of Famers. Icons, the both of them. Harlan in particular could wear anything he wants. Parker relegates them to the background. Let’s pause, take a moment, and appreciate the style.
On the broadcast, the sheer number of logos is overwhelming and comes off desperate. Get out of my face. Amazon is dead last in my Official Scorebug Rankings in large part due to the everpresence of Death’s Mouth. Less is always more. We already know who you are, and we hate it. Stop reminding everybody. Let the people listen to Harlan purr in peace.
The unveiling of Prime Video’s new NBA on Prime studio
The Result
Between the studio crew, the deep pockets, and the fact that it employs two of the top three NBA play-by-play guys alive, Amazon is better positioned than any network going forward. There’s something intriguing about it being brand-new. There’s no inertia of this is the way we’ve always done it. It doesn't have the luxury of baking nostalgia into its product. This shouldn’t be seen as a weakness. It can throttle fully into what the league is now. Could it wind up being a slightly elevated version of the same thing we’ve been seeing? Absolutely. That would be a solid outcome. But for now, with it being so early, and its roster already so well stocked, the ceiling feels very high.
ESPN/ABC
Tim Legler after Game 3 of the 2025 NBA Finals
The Cast
Tim Legler’s always got such a stellar tan. Me and some of my fellow whites were talking, and several of us view Legler’s golden tone as something to strive for, a perfect shade of I’ll Take My Lunch Outside. Check out this radiant lad telling me Christian Braun’s a fantastic cutter. Legz is continually glowing, in a perpetual state of wellness, with shiny hair and skin the color of honey. This is the healthiest-looking man I have ever seen? When I see him, I see someone who either just walked off the golf course or just stepped off the sand. He looks like he won life.
Timbo’s one of the very best analysts in the biz. He has been for a while. He can educate without condescending, and he can keep the mood light. Legler joins ESPN’s top crew. He’ll share the booth with Bang Breen and Richard Jefferson. Legler seems to watch everything, he's great at explaining complex plays in a way that’s understandable to a national TV audience, and his teeth are unbelievable. It’s a pleasure to have him on my television.
The Splash
A splash that rivals MJ’s jackknife into NBC. Inside the NBA lives, and it’s on the mothership now. The show is an institution and still capable of greatness. It belongs on the air for as long as they want to do it. They haven’t lost a step. If anything, the fellas seem a little rejuvenated.
It is the same show, done by the same people, in the same place it’s always been. Inside the NBA is not the show to watch if you’re trying to get into nitty-gritty X’s and O’s analysis. It doesn’t have to be. It can be something else, something just as important: entertaining. When you embrace the show on its terms, it remains a joy. More than any other show on television, this show remembers that sports are supposed to be fun.
The Detail
Shticks come and shticks go. Bangs last forever. Mike Breen has taken ownership over one of our most powerful words. It’s his now, and he should be feared because of it.
The Result
ESPN has Breen plus the best score bug in the game, so it can’t fall too far. But as of today, even with the addition of Inside, the other networks have more people I want to hear from than the current ESPN regime. Other networks are more serious about what’s happening between the lines. This is the way to grow the game. Maybe this new competition will inspire ESPN to raise its level of play. If nothing else, maybe it can start its games at their listed times. As for now, I’d rather watch a game on Amazon.
