The NBA Playoffs Start: Can Anyone Challenge the Thunder?

The NBA playoffs are kicking off with the play-in tournament beginning tomorrow. The Oklahoma City Thunder are being touted as the favorites to defend their championship. Colin Cowherd questions if teams like the San Antonio Spurs, Boston Celtics, or others stand a chance against them.

Mike Breen, the well-known play-by-play announcer for the New York Knicks and a prominent voice for the NBA on ESPN, isn’t thrilled with some recent league decisions as the playoffs approach.

His frustration was evident during the final regular-season game on Sunday night.

This season marks a historic first: all local network broadcasts will be cut from the playoffs when games are shown on national television. While these networks invested considerable money to broadcast the playoffs, the league previously allowed them to include local home broadcasts along with national TV coverage from the past season.

Breen, alongside his longtime partner Walt “Clyde” Frazier, voiced their discontent regarding the league’s decision on what turned out to be the last day of their broadcasting duties with the Knicks.

“For the first time, local broadcasters can’t cover the first round,” Breen noted during the MSG broadcast amidst the Knicks’ loss to the Charlotte Hornets.

Breen emphasized, “All playoff coverage is exclusive to national networks. We discussed this earlier this season, but personally, Clyde, I believe it’s the wrong choice. Fans want to hear their home team’s announcers, especially in the early rounds. They feel like family to many fans.”

While Breen acknowledged the financial aspects—given that networks pay a hefty sum for exclusivity—he still argued that fans deserve some advantage, “just a taste of having the home team during the first round.”

The NBA secured a massive $76 billion broadcasting rights agreement this season, applicable for the next 11 years, involving several platforms, including long-established networks and streaming services.

Breen expressed a desire for a compromise to restore local broadcasts during the playoffs, but he understands the complex nature of the business. “If there’s a way they could reach some kind of agreement, which I’m not keen on, that would be wonderful. After all, this is the last game of the season,” he remarked.

Moving forward, Breen is set to concentrate on his role for ESPN as the lead commentator. His iconic “Bang!” call has become synonymous with thrilling moments in NBA Playoffs, which are about to unfold. Essentially, teams from both conferences aim to claim the Larry O’Brien Trophy.

The reigning champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, will once again be the top seed in the Western Conference, with teams like the San Antonio Spurs, Denver Nuggets, and Los Angeles Lakers gunning to claim the conference title.

In the East, the Knicks hold the No. 3 seed, while the Detroit Pistons (No. 1) and Boston Celtics (No. 2) are heading into the playoffs with solid regular-season records.

The play-in tournament marks the beginning of the NBA Playoffs and will be streamed exclusively on Amazon Prime Video, with subsequent rounds split among NBC/Peacock, Prime Video, and ESPN.