NBA on ESPN
The NBA on ESPN is the branding used for the presentation of National Basketball Association (NBA) games on the ESPN family of networks. The ESPN cable network first televised NBA games from 1982 until 1984, and has been airing games currently since the 2002–03 NBA season. ESPN2 began airing a limited schedule of NBA games in 2002. ABC began televising NBA games under full ESPN production in 2006 (ABC Sports aired NBA games under the title of the NBA on ABC from 2002 to 2006). On October 6, 2014, ESPN and the NBA renewed their agreement through 2025.[1][2]
NBA on ESPN
Various personalities (see below)
United States
150 minutes or until game ends
1982 –
1984
October 30, 2002 –
present
History[edit]
2002–present[edit]
On January 22, 2002, the NBA signed an initial six-year agreement with The Walt Disney Company that allowed ABC and its sister network ESPN (of which Disney owned an 80% stake) to broadcast the league's 75 regular season and 24 playoff games.[6][7] Currently, ESPN airs games on Wednesdays and Fridays, with select games broadcast on ESPN or ABC on select Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays, as well as much of the Christmas Day games. ESPN/ABC also holds the exclusive rights to air the Eastern Conference Finals on even-numbered years (opposite TNT's Western Conference Finals telecast), the Western Conference Finals on odd-numbered years (opposite TNT's Eastern Conference Finals telecast). In contrast, ABC holds the exclusive broadcast rights to the NBA Finals. ESPN/ABC also has the rights to air the NBA draft.
In June 2007, the NBA renewed its television agreement with ESPN and ABC through 2016.[8] This agreement was later renewed again through 2025 in 2014.[1][2]
ESPN2[edit]
ESPN2 aired a handful of NBA regular season games from 2002 to 2006, typically in January, when prime time golf tournaments preempted coverage on ESPN. On several occasions, ESPN2 would air the first game of a doubleheader, while ESPN air the second game. Starting with the 2006–2007 season, regular season games on ESPN2 were discontinued. During the playoffs, ESPN2 airs games that otherwise would not have appeared on any outlet other than NBA TV, mostly on Friday nights and only during the first round.
ESPN2 NBA coverage is mostly made up of studio shows, notably NBA Coast to Coast. NBA Coast to Coast, formerly known as NBA Fastbreak Tuesday and NBA Nation, is a two-hour long Tuesday night studio show that features live cut-ins to games throughout the league. In addition to Coast to Coast, ESPN2 airs several editions of NBA Fastbreak, ESPN's NBA oriented highlight show.
Despite airing fewer than forty NBA games in its eleven years of existence, ESPN2 did televise NBA legend Michael Jordan's final game in Chicago in January 2003.
ESPN2 also aired Kobe Bryant's final game against the Utah Jazz on April 13, 2016.
ESPN2 also aired a LeBron James potential record breaking game on February 3, 2023[26]
ESPN2 is the primary outlet for ESPN WNBA coverage, televising regular season games, the WNBA Finals and the WNBA draft. WNBA Shootaround, the WNBA equivalent of ESPN's NBA pregame show, airs sporadically on the network, typically before presentations of WNBA Tuesday.
Beginning with the 2022–23 season, ESPN2 began airing alternate presentations of select NBA games in a similar vein to Manningcast and KayRod Cast during Monday Night Football and Sunday Night Baseball respectively, with Stephen A. Smith as host. The series was titled NBA in Stephen A.'s World.