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Watching the new NBA season in Australia? All the broadcast changes to know

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While the NBA season is finally back to normal, how you can watch it has changed.

After Josh Giddey impressed as a rookie last year, this season another Australian Dyson Daniels will debut after going 8th in the draft.

Ben Simmons is back on the court and the Golden State Warriors are looking to go back-to-back despite preseason drama.

Aussies are the third most represented country in the NBA. Without a doubt, that has also caused viewership of the NBA to spike in Australia. However, how you can watch the NBA from Australia has changed this season.

No more NBA games on SBS

SBS's 2-year NBA broadcast deal has come to an end. Over the previous 2 seasons, Australians could watch 2 games per week via SBS Viceland or SBS On Demand.

The games on offer were handy as they differed from the games shown on Kayo and Foxtel, plus they were free. They also often featured teams with Australian players.

picture of Australian NBA player Josh Giddey

League Pass prices have dropped significantly

League Pass remains the only way to watch all 1,230 games on the NBA schedule. The good news is it's significantly cheaper for the 2022/23 season – over $180 a year cheaper.

Package2021/22 monthly price2022/23 monthly price2021/22 annual price2022/23 annual price
Team Pass$19.99$19.99$169.99$119.99
League Pass$39.99$21.99$299.99$154.99
League Pass Premium$51.99$29.99$389.99$209.99

Team Pass allows you to select 1 team to watch for the whole season. League Pass and League Pass Premium give you access to every single regular season and Playoff game.

The only difference is that the Premium version allows you to watch on 2 devices at once rather than 1.

Deal

Stream every single NBA game FREE for 7 days

Stream every single NBA game live on NBA League Pass for 7 days FREE and no lock-in contract. Packages are available to watch every single game, 1 team or 8 select games per month.

The app has also had a huge facelift. As an avid League Pass user, I'm still getting used to the new interface. Navigation is trickier but otherwise, the app still works fine.

It's still a must for anyone that's more than a casual fan. Between the price decreases and being able to split the cost with a friend on the League Pass Premium package, it finally feels like good value.

If you're unfamiliar with the service, you can learn more about League Pass here. You can also give it a go with a 7-day free trial.

Expanded ESPN NBA coverage

On the eve of the opening night of the season, ESPN announced it would be expanding its NBA coverage.

This includes increasing the number of average games per week shown from 7 to 9. That equates to an extra 48 regular season games. That at least offsets the games lost via SBS, but obviously, those games aren't free as you'll be paying at least $25 per month for a Kayo subscription.

In Australia, ESPN games shown are typically the national broadcast games from the US via ESPN, TNT and ABC.

That means the expanded coverage is great if you're a Golden State, Lakers, Celtics, Suns, Clippers, 76ers or Nuggets fan as they dominate the national TV schedule.

Stephen Curry biting mouthguard with LeBron James in the background

Though if you're a fan of a team like OKC, the Magic, Kings, Pistons or even Raptors, you will be lucky to watch them in Australia without League Pass.

Next up is expanded playoff coverage. ESPN framed this as "an enhanced game packages for the first and second round of the NBA Playoffs". What that means though isn't clear.

Up until this season, ESPN would show at least half of the first and second round games. So you can likely expect more live games now. However, many of the early round fixtures tip off from 3am AEST, so at the very least it will give you the option to watch a replay or condensed game.

ESPN already had full coverage of the Conference Finals and Finals. The All-Star Weekend and NBA draft still remain in the new agreement.

In addition to the NBA, ESPN has every NBL game live along with WNBL and Boomers games.

The cheapest way to watch NBA games on ESPN is with Kayo. You can get a 7-day free trial for Kayo or try a 10-day free trial via Foxtel Now.

NBA opening Australian ESPN schedule

DateGameTime (AEDT)How to watch
Sat 22 OctMiami Heat vs Boston Celtics10:15 AMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Sat 22 OctGolden State Warriors vs Denver Nuggets12:35 PMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Sun 23 OctOrlando Magic vs Boston Celtics9:30 AMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Wed 26 OctNew Orleans Pelicans vs Dallas Mavericks10:00 AMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Wed 26 OctPhoenix Suns vs Golden State Warriors12:30 PMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Thu 27 OctMilwaukee Bucks vs Brooklyn Nets10:15 AMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Thu 27 OctDenver Nuggets vs Los Angeles Lakers12:35 PMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Fri 28 OctOklahoma City Thunder vs LA Clippers10:30 AMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Sat 29 OctWashington Wizards vs Indiana Pacers10:15 AMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Sat 29 OctPhoenix Suns vs New Orleans Pelicans12:35 PMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Mon 31 OctLos Angeles Lakers vs Denver Nuggets12:00 PMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Wed 2 NovOklahoma City Thunder vs Orlando Magic10:00 AMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Wed 2 NovPhoenix Suns vs Minnesota Timberwolves12:30 PMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Thu 3 NovChicago Bulls vs Charlotte Hornets10:15 AMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Thu 3 NovPortland Trail Blazers vs Memphis Grizzlies12:35 PMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Fri 4 NovOklahoma City Thunder vs Denver Nuggets10:30 AMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Sat 5 NovBoston Celtics vs Chicago Bulls10:15 AMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Sat 5 NovMinnesota Timberwolves vs Milwaukee Bucks12:35 PMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Mon 7 NovLA Clippers vs Utah Jazz1:30 PMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass
Tue 8 NovGolden State Warriors vs Sacramento Kings1:30 PMKayo Sports, Foxtel, NBA League Pass

Is the NBA season not giving you enough drama? See the best current basketball shows you can stream in Australia.

Image source: Kayo Sports website

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