The NBA’s current TV deal, which runs through the 2024-25 season, makes it easy and predictable to tune into nationally televised games, including the playoffs. Here is how to watch all the marquee NBA action, including the NBA on TNT, live without cable.
ESPN and ABC combine for 100 nationally televised NBA games each season, with the games that air on ABC featured as exclusive broadcasts. Unless ESPN has exclusive rights to the game, which does happen sometimes with popular teams like the Knicks, Suns, Warriors, and Nuggets, regular season games featured on ESPN will be blacked out in the team’s local market to enforce contracts with regional sports networks.
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NBA on ABC games
ABC features a slate of completely exclusive NBA games, including the iconic Christmas Day game, as well as;
- NBA Saturday Primetime on ABC (games begin in December)
- ABC Sunday Showcase (games begin in February)
- The NBA Finals
Which live TV streaming services carry ABC?
In the table below, we have listed the live TV streaming services that carry ABC. You can live stream ESPN games out-of-market, as well as exclusive ABC broadcasts, with each of these services. Note that while Sling TV doesn’t carry ABC, you can watch the NBA Finals with a Sling TV subscription by using your Sling login credentials to access the ESPN3 simulcast on the ESPN app.
| DIRECTV STREAM | Fubo | Hulu + Live TV | YouTube TV | Sling Orange & Blue | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $74.99 / month | $74.99 / month | $69.99 / month | $72.99 / month | $50 / month |
NBA on ESPN games
ESPN carries primarily regular season NBA action, marquee games like the Christmas Day game, and NBA Playoffs games.
In their annual NBA press release, the ESPN News Room marks with an asterisk the regular season games they have exclusive rights to, or the games they have exclusive rights to in just one market. For example, for several Knicks games, ESPN reserves the rights to air the game in the New York market, which means a blackout for MSG, but not for the regional sports network of the Knick’s opponent.
Which live TV streaming services carry ESPN?
In the table below, we list the live TV streaming services that carry ESPN.
| DIRECTV STREAM | Hulu + Live TV | Fubo | Sling Orange | YouTube TV | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $74.99 / month | $69.99 / month | $74.99 / month | $35 / month | $72.99 / month |
The NBA on TNT
Charles, Ernie, Kenny “the Jet” Smith, and Shaq, need I say more? I grew up watching this series, and the NBA on TNT has aged like fine wine. You can live stream both regular season NBA action, as well as playoff games, on TNT with several live TV streaming services, all listed below. As with ESPN’s lineup, not every regular season NBA on TNT game is exclusive to the network, which means local regional sports networks will retain the rights to the game some of the time. Having said that, TNT is the exclusive home of the Eastern Conference Finals.
TNT carries the following national NBA games:
- Regular season games
- NBA All Star Game
- Eastern Conference Finals (exclusive)
Which live TV streaming services carry TNT?
In the easy to use table below, we list the live TV streaming services that offer TBS and TNT live without cable.
| DIRECTV STREAM | Fubo | Sling Orange & Blue | Hulu + Live TV | YouTube TV | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||
| $74.99 / month | $74.99 / month | $50 / month | $69.99 / month | $72.99 / month |
NBA TV
NBA TV carries a selection of nationally televised NBA games throughout the season, and offers some playoff coverage, but doesn’t carry any playoff games exclusively. The total game count for NBA TV usually sits at over 100 games per season, but the vast majority are still available on local RSNs.
Which live TV streaming services carry NBA TV?
In the table below, we list the live TV streaming services that offer NBA TV. Most streaming services tuck away NBA TV in a premium package.
| DIRECTV STREAM – Choice | FuboTV Elite | Hulu + Live TV | YouTube TV | Orange & Blue Sports Extra | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $99.99 / month | $84.99 / month | $69.99 / month | $72.99 / month | $65 / month |