Warriors leaving KNBR after 32 years for FM station, flagship status

The Golden State Warriors have been on KNBR (680 AM) for more than a generation. But after 32 consecutive seasons (and 40 overall), the team is moving to a new radio home on the FM side of the dial.

By moving to FM 95.7 The Game, the Warriors now have their own flagship station and will no longer have their broadcasts bumped to another station in favor of San Francisco Giants games. According to the San Jose Mercury News‘ Tim Kawakami, Warriors ownership and management were upset when KNBR moved several of the team’s playoff games to its sister station (KNBR 1050) this spring to broadcast Giants games. Late during the regular season, Warriors games could be bumped by Giants spring training broadcasts or even pregame shows.

Warriors issue press release announcing they're moving all radio broadcasts from KNBR to @957thegame. pic.twitter.com/wbKUhvfpC6

— Let’s Go Warriors 💦💛💙 (@LetsGoWarriors) August 25, 2016

To be exact, 12 of their 24 playoff games from the past season were bumped. Ever since, the team has been looking for a new radio home. The move is effective immediately. Warriors broadcasts on 95.7 FM will begin with the upcoming 2016-17 season and continue through at least the 2018-19 campaign.

With the Warriors’ increasing success and popularity, sharing a station with another prominent team probably wasn’t sustainable. FM 95.7 The Game is also the radio home for the Oakland Athletics, but the Warriors will be the priority (and likely won’t have to worry about any early season broadcasts being bumped in favor of A’s postseason games for the foreseeable future). However, the station is also the broadcast home of the Oakland Raiders and there’s a good chance that some Warriors games will be bumped early in the season.

“The time commitment, I think, became problematic for KNBR and the Warriors to co-exist,” 95.7 host Greg Papa told the Mercury News‘ Anthony Slater. “I did those games for a long, long time. And whenever spring training started, we’d go off to some other station. And it was: ‘You kidding me? You’re going to lose a Warrior playoff game for an early-season Giant game? Or trade an early-season Giant game for an NBA game when they’re going for 73?’ So I felt that frustration and I know they did. I think they just became so popular that they needed a station that dedicated time to them and fans didn’t search where they were every night.”