It’s already been an offseason of change for the Trail Blazers, and those changes extend beyond what happens on the court.
After spending the last 14 years in a partnership with NBC Sports Northwest to show Trail Blazers games, the team is moving to ROOT SPORTS in a deal that extends through the 2024-25 season.
“We are ecstatic to join the ROOT SPORTS regional network starting next season,” said Trail Blazers President and CEO Chris McGowan via press release. “With so many other Pacific Northwest teams already in the ROOT SPORTS family and its broad footprint, choosing ROOT SPORTS was the best decision for our fans. We look forward to bringing Trail Blazers games to new viewers, as well as our loyal fans in Oregon, Washington and Alaska.”
In signing on with ROOT SPORTS, the Trail Blazers join the Mariners, Seahawks, Timbers, Kraken and a host of colleges that also have agreements with the Washington-based cable provider. And with so many teams, the number of games and the associated shows covering the teams on ROOT SPORTS will be well in excess of what was available previously. What’s more, ROOT SPORTS is already available on most cable -- if you have NBCSNW through your cable provider, you very likely already have ROOT SPORTS -- and satellite providers -- something that could not be said of the previous contract.
With both cable and satellite options, signing on with ROOT SPORTS more than doubles the team's reach to fans in Oregon, Washington and Alaska. And while ROOT SPORTS now has multiple teams under their umbrella whose seasons run concurrently -- for instance, the NBA and NHL regular seasons are generally aligned -- Trail Blazers games will also be broadcast live.
“The Portland Trail Blazers are a first-class organization, and we are thrilled to add Rip City basketball to our lineup of exciting game action,” said Mark Jorgensen, SVP & General Manager, ROOT SPORTS via press release. “Being the home to one of the best teams in the NBA solidifies ROOT SPORTS as a premier regional sports network in the nation.”
The hope is that ROOT SPORTS’ status as a “premier regional sports network in the nation” will help solve one of the few issues with the agreement: online streaming options. Currently, ROOT SPORTS is only available on AT&T’s streaming package, there’s reason to believe a station that has agreements with teams from the NBA, NFL, NHL and MLS and collegiate ranks will be an attractive option for some of the more popular streaming services, such as YouTube TV and Hulu.
But while the station and/or stream on which you watch Trail Blazers games might be changing, the broadcast itself is staying the same. The Trail Blazers retain control of their own broadcast now that they’re on ROOT SPORTS, which was also the case on NBCSNW, meaning the team of broadcasters and the look and feel of the game, not to mention the pre, halftime and post-game shows, will remain the same.