It is officially one week until NBC makes its long-awaited return to NBA broadcasting. And now, we have a clearer picture of what its first 10 game broadcasts will look like.
On Tuesday, NBC announced broadcast pairings for the first two weeks of the season. The release should give us a bit of an idea of what teams the network is looking to roll out throughout the remainder of the year.
As was previously announced, NBC’s lead NBA play-by-play announcer Mike Tirico will call the network’s season opener (Rockets-Thunder) alongside analysts Reggie Miller and Jamal Crawford next Tuesday. Noah Eagle and Grant Hill will call the second game of a doubleheader that night (Warriors-Lakers).
On Monday, October 27, Eagle will return alongside analysts Robbie Hummel and Austin Rivers for NBC’s first Peacock-exclusive NBA broadcast. The game will be the first in which Peacock debuts its “bench analyst” positions, with Hummel calling the game from the Pistons’ bench and Rivers calling the action from the Cavaliers’ sideline.
The first NBC crew that had not already been revealed before Tuesday’s announcement will also make its debut that night, with play-by-play voice Michael Grady teaming up with analyst Grant Hill to call Nuggets-Timberwolves on Peacock.
Tuesday, October 28, the lead team of Tirico, Miller, and Crawford returns for Knicks-Bucks, which will serve as NBC’s East Coast primetime matchup. The West Coast will hear play-by-play voice Terry Gannon make his NBA on NBC debut by teaming up with Hill for Clippers-Warriors.
Saturday, November 1 will see yet another new play-by-play partner for Hill as he teams up with Mark Followill for Peacock’s exclusive Mavericks-Pistons game from Mexico City.
Lastly, NBC’s East Coast-West Coast doubleheader on Tuesday, November 4 will also feature two new pairings. Grady and Crawford will take Magic-Hawks on the East Coast, while Gannon and Miller take Thunder-Clippers on the West Coast.
Earlier this week, NBC Sports president Rick Cordella explained that the network plans to mix and match pairings throughout the season, which is apparent in this announcement. He also suggested that the network will not name an official “lead team” other than Tirico as the top play-by-play voice. While Cordella left the door open for alternatives, he implied that the three-man booth of Tirico, Miller, and Crawford will likely call the Western Conference Finals together this season.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.