ABC's NBA schedule expands to Saturday night
ABC will expand its NBA coverage next year to include eight Saturday night games as well as six regular-season Sunday afternoon telecasts.
That is in addition to a Christmas Day doubleheader, plus ESPN coverage of games on Wednesday and Friday nights.
The new Saturday Night NBA package begins on Saturday, Jan. 23 and continues Jan. 30, Feb. 20, Feb. 27, March 5, March 12, March 19 and April 9. All games will begin at 8:30 p.m. ET.
The Sunday schedule will include games Jan. 31, Feb. 7, Feb. 21, March 6, March 13 and April 3. All of those games start at 3:30 p.m. ET, except for the Feb. 7 game, which starts at 2 p.m. Feb. 7 is Super Bowl Sunday.
The Christmas Day twin bill features its traditional 2:30 and 5 p.m. ET starts.
“The creation of Saturday Night NBA on ABC is an important moment in the long, successful relationship between ESPN and the NBA,” ESPN president John Skipper said. “The NBA’s massive popularity continues to open doors for new, collaborative opportunities, and this new series demonstrates ESPN’s commitment to showcase the NBA as often — and across as many platforms — as possible. Saturday night games will be highlighted by the NBA’s biggest stars, top rivalries and most compelling storylines. We expect to establish this series as a big-game destination for NBA fans, along the lines of what we’ve accomplished in college football with Saturday Night Football on ABC.”
“Through our great partnership with ESPN, we’re thrilled to be able to bring the best in basketball to our prime-time viewers on Saturdays beginning this January while building on our great Sunday afternoon NBA lineup,” added Disney/ABC TV president Ben Sherwood.
This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service – if this is your content and you’re reading it on someone else’s site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.
