Bringing the NBA back to NBC stirred up some memories of their storied past, but NBCUniversal and Peacock see even greater potential in the league’s future.
In fairness to NBC and ‘90s/’00s-vintage fans, there’s a lot of history to latch onto. NBA on NBC’s run from 1990 to 2002 was a golden era for Gen X and elder Millennials that spanned Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls’ dominance, the ‘92 Olympic Dream Team, NBA Jam, the Shaquille O’Neal/Kobe Bryant Los Angeles Lakers, and an interior game that player analysts from the period still long for today.
NBCUniversal hasn’t shied away from any of it. During its Kentucky Derby coverage earlier this month, it assembled stars (and Minions) from the company’s properties to welcome back John Tesh’s iconic basketball anthem Roundball Rock.
Last week, it used AI to conjure Jim Fagan, the voice on NBA on NBC, who died in 2017, for a new ad touting the league’s return to the network.
But as observers, including Sports Media Watch’s Jon Lewis, cautioned against leaning too forcefully into turn-of-the-Millennium nostalgia, NBCUniversal clarified in a briefing on Tuesday ahead of its TV upfronts that at least a few elements of the NBA’s return would be markedly different than when the league departed nearly 23 years ago.
NBCU’s ad-backed Peacock streamer, with its nearly 100 million active users each month, is part of the 40% of NBA inventory that will shift to streaming for the 2025-26 season. In its first year of the new deal with NBCUniversal, the NBA will make 100 regular-season games and 40 playoff games available on Peacock.
In that new reality, both avid and casual fans are looking for ways to access broadcasts from multiple perspectives. By offering fans mobile score cards and highlights, enhanced game graphics, and direct connections to live action and key plays, Peacock is helping fans absorb an NBA ecosystem that’s grown over the last 35 years into far more than a couple of games and an episode of NBA Inside Stuff each week.
“By adding the NBA, we’re bringing year-round sports, including 129 nights in primetime, to both advertisers and viewers,” said Peter Lazarus, evp of NBC Sports advertising and partnerships. “This year into next, Peacock is proud to offer fans over 7,500 hours of live sports.”
Covering the angles
With NBC and Peacock hosting Super Bowl 60 in 2026, Lazarus noted that the addition of the NBA would give NBCUniversal “40% of big-event viewership” next year. But it’s what the Peacock team did with NFL Sunday Night Football, The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, WrestleMania, and the 2024 Paris Olympics that has brought its production to the next level.
