BT Sport to bring NBA basketball to the UK

BT Sport has sealed a multi-year deal to show live professional basketball in the UK. 

The deal will see live NBA matches broadcast by the broadcaster from December. The first game will see Eastern Conference-leading Indiana Pacers featuring Paul George and Roy Hibbert, take on West Coast rivals the LA Clippers featuring Chris Paul and Blake Griffin at 8.30pm UK time on BT Sport 2 on Sunday. 

Up to 200 games will be screened throughout the season, appearing across BT Sport 1, BT Sport 2 and ESPN. There will be up to seven live games per week throughout the regular season and the first and second rounds of the Playoffs, as well as every game of the Conference Finals, culminating in the NBA Finals in June.

Read Recombu Digital’s guide to BT Sport and find out how to get itFans will be able to watch GB’s Luol Deng and the Chicago Bulls take on the Brooklyn Nets as one of five scheduled games on BT Sport on Christmas Day. The Nets will face off against the Atlanta Hawks at The O2 in London on January 16, as part of NBA Global Games 2014.

Simon Green, head of BT Sport, said: “BT Sport will be the new home of the NBA in the UK and Ireland. The NBA is simply the best basketball in the world; it is fast moving, high scoring and includes some the world’s most recognisable global sporting icons. Existing NBA fans will love our coverage, and we look forward to converting many more.”

The deal will also include new magazine shows on BT Sport, NBA Action and NBA Inside Stuff, providing weekly highlights and insights into the lives of NBA stars both on and off the court. 

Image: BT