The Gleaners; Jean-Francois Millet; 1857

We have one more season of NBA basketball before the Amazon-Peacock partial takeover. However, how local games are shared with fans is likely to remain complicated as the regional sports network industry continues to implode and teams take streaming subscriptions into their own hands.

In an attempt to sort this out for American fans trying to figure out how to most affordably get access to the NBA games they want based on where they live, I put together this guide to streaming the NBA.

A few notes:

• There’s always cable or satellite TV. I didn’t consider these options because this is traditionally how most fans watched NBA games. These are highly local in nature. They may end up being less annoying and even cheaper depending on your circumstances, including what else you want access to watch beyond the NBA. Your mileage may vary.

• I don’t mess around with illegal streams and will not be recommending anyone do so. (Thankfully, Nuggets fans seem to finally have a good legal option!)

• This is focused entirely on American fans. Sorry, international friends.

• This is not exactly meant to be read front to back. You can scroll to the section most relevant to you.

Let’s get to it.

CASUAL FAN

If you’re a casual NBA fan that just wants access to the biggest games and most of the playoffs, you need:

• TNT

• ESPN

• ESPN2

• ABC

If you’re a casual fan but would like to have an NBA game available most nights, add NBA TV to the mix. See below for options. If you’re really just here for big games and the playoffs, and you’re fine with just a couple of nights of NBA per week, you’re fine without it.

Here are the streaming options as of October 2024.

YouTube TV: This has all of the above networks, including NBA TV. Current pricing is $72.99 per month. They do have deals for new customers. In full disclosure, this is what I currently use. No complaints from the last NBA season. This is pretty clearly the best option for Casual Fans, Neutral Hardcore Fans and Local Fans of Teams whose games are on an NBC Sports regional network plus the Pelicans and Wizards.

Hulu With Live TV: This has ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 and TNT … but no NBA TV option. It’s currently $76.99 per month and includes Disney+ and ESPN+. So if you are already subscribing to those, don’t mind ads on on-demand Hulu and Disney+ content and don’t mind missing NBA TV, this is an option.

Sling TV: Sling has two separate packages: Orange ($40/month) currently has ESPN, ESPN2 and TNT, while Blue ($45/month) has ABC. You cannot get NBA TV via Sling. $95 per month for the two packages combined is obviously non-competitive. You can get ABC via a digital antenna in most places in the United States, but that will require a digital antenna and likely a separate DVR device unless you’re planning to watch ABC games live exclusively. If you’re willing to set that up and willing to forgo NBA TV, the Orange package for $40 per month might do the trick.

Fubo TV: Fubo does not currently have TNT in any package — you’re going to miss big multiple games per week, playoff series, Inside the NBA and All-Star Weekend unless Fubo and Warner Bros. Discovery cut a deal. You can pair Fubo TV ($79.99) with a Max subscription ($9.99), as Max will get you NBA on TNT with a sports add-on ($9.99). But at this point the price is well above other options, unless you already have or want Fubo for its other sports content.

DirecTV Stream: This has everything (and a lot more extra channels compared to most other services). After a trial, it’s $114.99 per month.

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NEUTRAL HARDCORE FAN

If you’re a general NBA fan that doesn’t feel like you need to watch every game for a particular team, but you do want access to all of the games, you will need access to:

• TNT

• ESPN

• ESPN2

• ABC

• NBA TV

• NBA League Pass

• Whatever network your local team is on

This last bullet is the tricky one, unless you live in a market where you can’t imagine wanting to watch that team’s regular season games. See ‘Fan of a Team Local to You’ below for options based on the territory you live in. If you’re less concerned about the local team’s games, choose a package from the ‘Casual Fan’ section and add League Pass.

For NBA League Pass: you have two price options. With ads watching on a single device? That’s $99.99 for the full season. If instead of ads you want the in-arena feed and you want to watch on up to three devices, the full season costs $159.99. You can also pay monthly on either package, and the NBA runs huge discounts toward the end of the NFL season if you’re happy to wait that long.

FAN OF A SINGLE NON-LOCAL TEAM

This is a pretty simple set-up. Examples include Lakers fans in Sioux City, Heat fans in Juneau and Knicks fans in Boca Raton.

You need:

• ESPN

• ESPN2

• ABC

• TNT

• NBA TV

• NBA Team Pass

NBA Team Pass gives you live access to every game for a particular team that isn’t on national T.V. (which is why you still need access to those networks separately). The catch is that you cannot be in the market for that team. You won’t be able to set up a Team Pass for a team while connecting from within that territory.

NBA Team Pass is $89.99. Add on a package from the ‘Casual Fan’ section and you’re all set.

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FAN OF A SINGLE TEAM LOCAL TO YOU

This is the most common and most complicated situation. Examples: a Celtics fans in Boston. A Warriors fan in San Jose. A Nuggets fan in Wyoming.

If you’re a fan of a single team and want the ability to watch every game, you need everything a casual fan needs including NBA TV, plus you’ll need special access to the local network partner(s). This network is different for every team so we spell that out based on currently available information below. Availability of this network on the various streaming options in the ‘Casual Fan’ section can impact decisions and, importantly, can change midseason as carriage fees come up for negotiation. (Note that Sling doesn’t have any of these options, so if you’re interested closing in your local team and your local team doesn’t have its own streaming service or isn’t broadcast games over the air, Sling isn’t going to work.)

As a refresher:

• YouTube TV has all national games that aren’t blacked out locally

• Hulu With Live TV is missing NBA TV

• Fubo is missing TNT

• Sling TV doesn’t have NBA TV and getting ABC requires a $45 second package

• DirecTV Stream has everything at a substantially higher price

If YouTube TV has the network your local team is on, it is likely to be the best option. If your team’s games are available via direct subscription such as Bally+ or a team-specific package, YouTube TV plus that service is likely to be your cheapest all-inclusive option.

Godspeed to you.

ATLANTA HAWKS

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

BOSTON CELTICS

Local games are on NBC Sports Boston, which is available on YouTube TV, Hulu With Live TV, Fubo and DirecTV Stream.

BROOKLYN NETS

Local games are on YES Network, which is available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

Games will also be available via the Gotham Sports App, which will offer both YES Network and MSG+, providing access for local fans to non-national Nets and Knicks games for $41.99 per month. If you want to skip the Knicks, a YES-only package is available for $24.99 per month.

CHARLOTTE HORNETS

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

CHICAGO BULLS

The Bulls have joined the over-the-air revolution: all of their non-national games will be on CHSN, which is available over-the-air in the Chicago area and currently on DirecTV Stream. So the combo of YouTube TV plus a digital antenna/DVR is a good set-up for local fans.

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

DALLAS MAVERICKS

Local games will be available on WFAA and KMPX over the air, so get that digital antenna and DVR set up. It’s still unclear if any streaming services will also pick up WFAA and KMPX; DirecTV Stream currently carries WFAA.

DENVER NUGGETS

The Nuggets recently announced the launch of Altitude+ which appears to be an option for local fans to stream non-national games for $19.95 per month. You can’t subscribe yet, though. This is a huge deal because Altitude, the Nuggets’ broadcaster, is notoriously difficult to get for even cable subscribers. It is available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

DETROIT PISTONS

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS

Local games are available on NBC Sports Bay Area, which is available on YouTube TV, Hulu With Live TV, Fubo and DirecTV Stream.

HOUSTON ROCKETS

Local games are on Space City Home Network, which is currently available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

INDIANA PACERS

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

The Clippers also have a separate streaming service called ClipperVision, available for $19.99 per month, which provides local streaming access to all non-national games plus Spanish broadcasts, alternative broadcasts and more.

LOS ANGELES LAKERS

Local games are on Spectrum SportsNet. You can subscribe to Spectrum SportsNet+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to non-national games. SportsNet is also available on DirecTV Stream.

MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

MIAMI HEAT

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

MILWAUKEE BUCKS

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

NEW ORLEANS PELICANS

Local games will be available on Gray Media affiliates (including Fox 8 in New Orleans) over the air, so get that digital antenna and DVR set up. Currently, YouTube TV, Fubo, DirecTV Stream and Hulu With Live TV get Fox 8 in New Orleans. Fans in surrounding areas should check their listings.

NEW YORK KNICKS

Local games are available on MSG, which is availabe through DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

Games will also be available via the Gotham Sports App, which will offer both YES Network and MSG+, providing access for local fans to non-national Nets and Knicks games for $41.99 per month. If you want to skip the Nets, there’s an MSG+ package for $29.99 per month.

OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

ORLANDO MAGIC

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

PHILADELPHIA 76ERS

Local games are available on NBC Sports Philadelphia, which is available on YouTube TV, Hulu With Live TV and Fubo.

PHOENIX SUNS

The Suns have the best set-up for any NBA team right now. Local games will be available on over the air on Arizona’s Family Sport, so fans can set up a digital antenna and DVR to get all non-national games for free. Alternately, local fans can subscribe to Suns Live for streaming access to all of these games for $14.99 (or $99.99 for the full season, cheaper than any other team currently offers).

PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS

Local games will be available on The Rip City TV Network over the air, so get that digital antenna and DVR set up. Alternately, local fans can subscribe to BlazerVision, available for $120 for the full season.

SACRAMENTO KINGS

Local games are available on NBC Sports California, which is available on YouTube TV, Hulu With Live TV, Fubo and DirecTV Stream.

SAN ANTONIO SPURS

Local games are on Bally Sports. You can subscribe to Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month to get streaming access to these non-national games. Bally Sports affiliates are also available on DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

TORONTO RAPTORS

Thanks to all of the Canadian fans who responded to my call for help, and especially reader Kevin H. who walked me through it. Basically: if you’re a Raptors fan anywhere in Canada, you need access to both TSN and SportsNet. You can buy non-cable streaming packages from both providers (creatively named TSN+ and SportsNet+), but it will run you about $500 CAD per year. (This is what happens when your team is owned by a cable company.)

UTAH JAZZ

Local games will be available on KJZZ over the air, so get that digital antenna and DVR set up. Alternately, local fans can subscribe to Jazz+, available for $19.99 per month.

WASHINGTON WIZARDS

Local games are available on the Monumental Sports Network. Monumental+ is available for $19.99 per month. Monumental is also available on YouTube TV, Hulu With Live TV and DirecTV Stream.

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