By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
WHILE National Basketball Association games have yet to find a permanent venue to be aired on television locally, fans have to make do for now of weekend airings of the matches by way of national free-to-air channel CNN Philippines.
In an announcement made on Wednesday, the NBA said it has struck a deal with CNN Philippines to televise select games and feature highlights across its various news programs, including Sports Desk and News Night.
The airing of the games begins on Saturday, Nov. 16.
“Weekends just got better with the return of live NBA games on national television through CNN Philippines,” said NBA Philippines Managing Director Carlo Singson in a statement shared to members of media.
“Filipino fans now have a choice of watching our games across a variety of platforms including television, computers and mobile devices via social media and NBA League Pass,” the statement further read.
The NBA found itself sans a local TV partner after its long-standing partnership with Solar Entertainment Corp. ended and was not renewed in the lead-up to the start of the of the 2019-20 season.
Solar operated the Basketball TV and NBA Premium TV channels, widely acknowledged as the go-to sources on TV for comprehensive NBA coverage in the country.
Cignal, TV5 and Sky Cable presented a joint bid to air the games but negotiations reportedly are on stalemate as of the moment.
In place of television prior to the deal with CNN Philippines, NBA games were solely being aired on social media platforms of the league’s local office — Twitter and Facebook — and through NBA League Pass, the NBA’s premium subscription service.
First to be aired on Saturday is the game between the Boston Celtics and the Golden State Warriors at 11:30 a.m. to be followed on Sunday, Nov. 17, of the match pitting the Milwaukee Bucks against the Indiana Pacers at 8 a.m.
On Nov. 23 it will be the Houston Rockets versus the Los Angeles Clippers (11:30 a.m.), Nov. 24 is the New Orleans Peilcans against the Utah Jazz (10 a.m.), and Nov. 30 it will be the Dallas Mavericks vs. the Phoenix Suns (10 a.m.).
December schedules will be announced later.
CNN Philippines is available on free-to-air television on Channel 5 for Zamboanga, Channel 8 for Bacolod, Channel 9 for Manila, Cebu and Davao, and Channel 12 for Baguio, while cable subscribers can check with their local providers for more information on channel listing.
