December 7, 2023

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Regardless of anyone’s individual opinion of the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament, there’s one thing beyond debate: It’s certainly been different. From the much-debated court designs to the heightened intensity of play, the league certainly succeeded in creating something that stood out from the normal routines of the early regular season.

Now that the tournament heads to Las Vegas for the semifinals and final, the NBA is largely assured of a highly interesting storyline. One possible scenario presents a blockbuster LeBron-Giannis matchup for the trophy, while others center on the rise of the Pacers and Pelicans after each missed last year’s playoffs.

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]]

In-Season NBA Tourney Upshot: Success. But Will It Change? [[link removed]]

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The first-ever NBA In-Season Tournament semifinals begin on Thursday in Las Vegas when the Indiana Pacers, Milwaukee Bucks, New Orleans Pelicans, and Los Angeles Lakers battle for a spot in Saturday’s final and a $500,000-per-player prize for the winners.

By most accounts, the inaugural edition has been a success, though many players and fans initially questioned the event’s purpose. “I’m not even going to lie. I don’t even know what’s going on,” Los Angeles Clippers guard Bones Hyland said [[link removed]] before the tournament began.

But as the group stage and quarterfinals played out, the NBA saw its best November attendance ever (averaging 18,208 fans per game), players increased their intensity [[link removed]], and viewership has been up from what the NBA normally sees during this point of the season. For example, group-play games on ESPN and TNT saw a 26% increase from last season’s comparable windows.

So, it’s safe to say that the first NBA Cup awarded on Saturday night won’t be the last.

However, the in-season tournament is young and may need to keep evolving to stay relevant long-term, which won’t be easy.

“It’s unlikely that we’re going to have a radical change to the format going into next year because it was so difficult to even align around this one,” NBA executive vice president of basketball strategy and analytics Evan Wasch told Front Office Sports.” But that doesn’t mean that tweaks aren’t warranted [or that] we wouldn’t consider bringing back some things that may have ended up on the cutting room floor.”

One of the early ideas that got scrapped: an eight-game group stage, which would have allowed for all five teams per group to play home-and-aways against each other. (Argument against: That could have diminished the importance of some matchups.) “I expect you would see even more urgency in some of those early games next year, which is a benefit of having only four,” Wasch said.

Still, Wasch said the NBA is open to studying models that could increase the number of group-stage games and create a longer build-up to the knockout round.

For now, the NBA is getting ready to crown a new “champion” in December — and start what it hopes will be a new fall tradition.

PODCAST

🎙️ They Said What?

“It felt like it was a playoff game Tuesday night … I think the tournament is here to stay.”

— ESPN’s NBA Front Office Insider Bobby Marks on the atmosphere at the Lakers-Suns in-season tournament game. To hear more from Marks about the tournament, check out the latest episode of FOS Today.

🎧 Listen and subscribe on Apple [[link removed]], Google [[link removed]], and Spotify [[link removed]].

NBA Viewers Like the In-Season Tourney. What About Broadcasters? [[link removed]]

Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA’s current broadcast partners have to be happy with the inaugural edition of the in-season tournament.

Group-stage games on ESPN and TNT averaged 1.5 million viewers — a 26% increase [[link removed]] from last season’s comparable windows — while local telecasts saw a similar 20% boost.

Next season, those media entities will hope for more of the same. But as the tournament grows, the viewership benefits might be seen elsewhere.

The NBA will explore [[link removed]] selling in-season tournament games as their own broadcast package during the next set of media rights deals. The current ones will expire following the 2024-25 season. Potential bidders have been said [[link removed]] to include Netflix, though with varying [[link removed]] assessments of the streamer’s actual interest. Meanwhile, Amazon isn’t being shy about wanting [[link removed]] to acquire at least some NBA rights.

Selling the in-season tournament to a single broadcaster would be an easy way for the NBA to bring on a new media partner and likely boost its overall rights fee intake, similar to NASCAR’s new deals [[link removed]], which include small midseason packages with Amazon and Warner Bros. Discovery.

But that scenario could prevent some novel broadcast mashups.

On Thursday, ESPN and TNT are each airing one of the two semifinal games, and the networks are collaborating [[link removed]] on crossover coverage, implementing each other’s on-air personalities.

“This is the first step in something that potentially could create other opportunities [in] the future,” TNT Sports executive vice president and chief content officer Craig Barry said to Front Office Sports. David Roberts, ESPN’s head of event studio production, echoed that sentiment: “This is just a starting point.”.

Next April, after an exclusive negotiating period with Disney and WBD, the NBA’s full set of media rights will be open for bidding — the in-season tournament included.

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This enables Sportradar, through the application of its AI, machine learning and computer vision capabilities, to deliver information faster while generating advanced analytics [[link removed]] and deeper insights.

This derived data and content is being used to help teams better evaluate the performance of their players, craft richer stories that add greater depth to broadcasts and create new betting opportunities. All of which increase a fan’s understanding of what they are seeing, bring them closer to the action and provide more reasons to keep watching and engaging.

Learn more [[link removed]].

The Most Talked-about Part of the NBA Tourney? Look Down [[link removed]]

Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

Amid the success of the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament, there has been a very notable and visually jarring exception: the court design.

The league introduced [[link removed]] a set of 30 new designs aimed at creating separation between the tournament and regular-season games. For many teams, the feel is vastly different from their normal games.

Those new looks, containing a unified design template for the first time in league history, are aimed in part to link to each team’s City Edition alternate uniform. Notably, the courts also are completely painted with no natural wood showing.

The bolder designs, league officials said, were also boosted at the urging [[link removed]] of commissioner Adam Silver, who pushed staffers to be “bigger and bolder” in their thinking.

There were two significant problems, however, with that approach: how fans felt about the floors, and how players felt.

The floors quickly generated widespread [[link removed]] rebuke [[link removed]] among fans, particularly across social media, even as TV ratings for tournament games showed [[link removed]] strength. Players primarily voiced a different and more pressing complaint, as the new courts were seen [[link removed]] by many as slippery and an injury hazard. Celtics guard Jaylen Brown, whose $304 million contract is the richest [[link removed]] in league history, hurt his groin in a game against Toronto and blamed the new courts.

“As players, we’re all here for the in-season tournament because it’s going to generate revenue, excitement, competition,” Brown said last month. “We’ve got to make sure the floor is safe to play on. We can’t put our players out there and risk their health.”

Costs for alternate courts such as these are estimated [[link removed]] at $75,000 to $150,000 each, but some for the tourney are reported [[link removed]] to be rented.

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban told [[link removed]] the Dallas Morning News he’s “not a fan of the courts,” but that sentiment was quickly coupled with praise: “It was a brilliant marketing idea.”

Meaningful NBA Games Finally Hit Las Vegas. Expect More [[link removed]]

Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA’s relationship with Las Vegas was already growing quickly, but it’s about to take a giant step forward — with perhaps even bigger moves to follow.

The league will stage the semifinals and finals of the inaugural In-Season Tournament at Sin City’s T-Mobile Arena. The games mark an acceleration of the league’s presence in the sports boomtown following the existing NBA Summer League, the 2007 All-Star Game, and exhibition games played in recent years.

Actively hyped since this past summer, even on the Sphere [[link removed]], the end of the NBA In-Season Tournament also marks the latest major sports event to hit Las Vegas.

“What Vegas brings to professional sports right now is pretty obvious to all these leagues, including the NBA,” said Steve Hill, CEO and chair of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

“There’s no place like Las Vegas now. What we’re trying to accomplish is to create further separation so they think about Las Vegas, and [then] everything else.”

Expansion Signs

The rising presence in Las Vegas, of course, begs the question [[link removed]] of when the city will gain an expansion team, a subject that continues to dominate chatter around the league.

Stars such as LeBron James [[link removed]] and Shaquille O’Neal [[link removed]] have both publicly announced their intent to own a team there, while the Oak View Group hopes to lead a $10 billion development [[link removed]] with an NBA arena as its centerpiece.

“The owners are all smart men and women,” Oscar Goodman, former Las Vegas mayor and husband of current mayor Carolyn Goodman, told [[link removed]] NBA.com. “They know this is a very fertile area. Just a matter of time. It’s when, not if.”

Conversation Starters Check out a first look [[link removed]] at the court design in Las Vegas for the In-Season Tournament semifinals. Four teams are headed to Vegas for the NBA’s first In-Season Tournament semifinals — and the get-in prices [[link removed]] for the two matchups are very different. Hollywood star Kevin Hart is planning his own ManningCast-style alt-broadcast for the NBA In-Season Tournament. Are you in? Vote [[link removed]] in our poll.

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Transforming NBA Fan Experience

The application of advanced technology, including AI, has sparked a digital revolution in the sports industry, as data is deciphered and utilized in new and more meaningful ways.

As an exclusive partner of the NBA, Sportradar [[link removed]] is focused on unlocking the full commercial potential of the league’s deep data in real-time through the creation of value-added, next-generation products that engage, entertain, and build loyalty with existing and new fans and bettors.

Learn more [[link removed]] about Sportradar and their partnership with the NBA.

Editor's Picks The NBA Has Autumn Relevance Thanks To In-Season Tournament [[link removed]]by Doug Greenberg [[link removed]]The league set a new attendance record in the month of November. Would Disney’s ESPN Walk Away From The NBA? [[link removed]]by Michael McCarthy [[link removed]]Will financial pressures impact the company's decision with a longtime partner? Blockbuster Mavs-Cuban Deal Puts Dallas Casino Complex In Spotlight [[link removed]]by Eric Fisher [[link removed]]Deal valuing NBA team at about $3.5 billion is premised on arena-casino development. NBA Coaches to Receive In-Season Tournament Prize Payouts [[link removed]]by Doug Greenberg [[link removed]]The winning head coach will reportedly receive $500,000 in prize money. Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Podcast [[link removed]] Sports Careers [[link removed]] Written by David Rumsey [[link removed]], Eric Fisher [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Brian Krikorian [[link removed]]

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