A look at the Unrivaled court. Credit: TNT Sports
By Andrew Bucholtz on

Less AI and more AA in your search results.

Add Awful Announcing as a preferred source on Google

While it looks like TNT Sports is unlikely to have NBA rights after this 2024-25 NBA season, they continue to amp up their presence in other sports. The latest big move there comes with them not only landing coveted exclusive broadcast rights to Unrivaled (the upcoming women’s basketball 3-on-3 league set to launch in January that’s already drawn commitments from a ton of top WNBA players, including Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier (who are co-founders of the league), Arike Ogunbowale, Kelsey Plum, Angel Reese, and more) but taking an equity stake in the league.

Beyond the “unspecified” investment for equity, TNT Sports will broadcast at least 45 matches across their platforms. TNT will be the league’s lead network, with games there on Mondays and Fridays. But truTV will also factor in here, especially on Saturdays, with that fitting with that network’s recent sports emphasis. All games will also be streamed on parent corporation Warner Bros. Discovery’s direct-to-consumer service Max, and highlights will be showcased across TNT Sports’ digital platforms, including Bleacher Report, House of Highlights, HighlightHER, and more.

The WBD release here notes that negotiations on this were led by former Turner president David Levy and former ESPN president John Skipper, who both have their own investments in this league (Skipper personally, Levy through the Horizon Sports & Experiences firm he’s the co-CEO of). It also mentions that “Unrivaled and TNT Sports will partner with Mediapro North America to support all audio and visual production components of each game.” Here are some quotes from that release:

“Our TNT Sports portfolio centers on premium live sports and our media and equity partnership with Unrivaled deepens our commitment to further expanding the depth of top tier women’s sports programming we offer our fans and presents an opportunity for us to shape and amplify the continued growth of women’s basketball,” said Luis Silberwasser, Chairman & CEO, TNT Sports.

…”TNT Sports has a long and storied history of unparalleled coverage and production in both pro and college basketball, and I have witnessed their commitment to excellence firsthand,” said Levy. “Together, Unrivaled and TNT Sports are committed to growing the league’s brand and engaging fans with this exciting new three-on-three competition. By embracing a shared fan-first approach, we are dedicated to delivering a best-in-class viewing experience for the league’s inaugural season and beyond.”

TNT Sports is one of the few broadcasters not included in the next slate of WNBA media deals, so it’s definitely notable to see them pick up significant women’s professional basketball coverage elsewhere. It’s unclear yet just how much attention Unrivaled will draw; the BIG3 on the men’s side has seen moderate success from a 3-on-3 league, but Unrivaled has several significant advantages, including commitments from absolute top players (who otherwise might have chosen to play overseas in the WNBA offseason given the salaries there, even if the other opportunities around that league are larger).

But this is certainly a property that fits nicely in with TNT Sports’ increasing focus on basketball beyond the NBA. As per that league, TNT Sports is still trying to retain rights there in a lawsuit, but that seems unlikely. But they have plenty of other sports, now including Unrivaled, and the equity investment gives them a strong incentive to do a good job broadcasting this new league. We’ll see how it works out for them.

[WBD]

About Andrew Bucholtz

Andrew Bucholtz has been covering sports media for Awful Announcing since 2012. He is also a staff writer for The Comeback. His previous work includes time at Yahoo! Sports Canada and Black Press.

View all posts by Andrew Bucholtz