The NBA on ESPN brand is used for the presentation of National Basketball Association (NBA) games on the ESPN family of networks. The ESPN cable network first televised NBA games from 1982 to 1984, and has been broadcasting games currently since the 2002-03 NBA season. ESPN2 began broadcasting a limited schedule of NBA games in 2002. ESPN on ABC began broadcasting NBA games in 2006 (ABC Sports aired NBA games under the NBA title on ABC from 2002 to 2006). On October 6, 2014, ESPN and the NBA renewed their agreement through 2025.
ESPN on ABC is the broadcast home of the NBA. ABC broadcasts games on Christmas Day and under the title of NBA Saturday Primetime, airs on Saturday nights, and NBA Sunday Showcase, airs on Sunday afternoons from January through the end of the season, and continues to air games during the first rounds of the NBA Playoffs. , culminating in exclusive coverage of the NBA Finals.
ESPN broadcasts NBA games on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Most NBA games on the ESPN cable network air on Fridays at 7:30 p.m. ET and 8 p.m. PT (10 p.m. ET) as part of the "Costa a Costa" doubleheader. Wednesday games are mostly single games, televised at 9 p.m. ET (usually after an ACC college basketball game) (if ESPN doesn't broadcast a college basketball game, then it follows the Friday format). In addition to games on ABC, several Sundays throughout the season also feature ESPN-televised games, usually overnight, though most nights ESPN defers to NBA TV for national Sunday broadcasts. at night.
ESPN's game presentation is known as NBA (name of the day) (ie NBA Wednesday, NBA Friday and NBA Sunday). The broadcast was also previously known as ESPNBA. ESPN used to brand a few other games with the NBA Special Edition brand, but dropped the name in favor of the NBA (name of the day) format in the 2013-14 season and beyond (for example, NBA Monday); if the game airs on a holiday, ESPN marks it according to the special occasion. Unless otherwise specified, ESPN's NBA broadcasts are non-exclusive, in that local sports networks may still carry the game in their local market. Likewise, coverage of the first round playoffs is not exclusive.
As part of the NBA's cable television deal, ESPN broadcasts one conference final per year; since the 2004 NBA Playoffs, ESPN has broadcast the Eastern Conference Finals in even-numbered years and the Western Conference Finals in odd-numbered years. Most conference final games are televised on ESPN, with Game 1, 4, and/or Game 7 usually being reserved for ABC. Outside of the conference finals, ESPN airs playoff games only on Thursdays (beginning with the conference semifinals), Fridays, and Saturdays (with competitor TNT airing most games the other nights of the week).