On sports media: Wolves' first-round games will be exclusively national next season
The NBA's new national television agreement will bring an end to Michael Grady and Jim Petersen working Wolves games in the opening round.
If you enjoy listening to Michael Grady and Jim Petersen call Timberwolves action in the playoffs, don’t miss Games 2 and 3 of their series against the Los Angeles Lakers. That’s because this will be the last season in which their network, FanDuel Sports, will be allowed to air any Wolves games in the postseason.
Sports Business Journal (SBJ) reported Friday that the NBA’s new national television and media deals with ESPN/ABC, NBC and Amazon will give them exclusive rights in the playoffs. The 11-year agreements will provide the NBA with $77 billion.
The networks weren’t about to pay that type of money and then lose big ratings in the local markets to Regional Sports Networks or over-the-air stations. The Wolves reportedly are expected to opt back into their deal with FanDuel for 2025-26, but this means the advertising revenue FanDuel gets in the opening round will be gone. This is a bigger deal to the RSN than it is to the team, given the increase in national television income will get shared by the clubs.
For fans, it means that they won’t have the opportunity to hear Grady and Petersen once the regular season ends. At least not on television. I’m guessing most Wolves fans prefer the duo, given they are familiar voices and do a standout job of making it clear they want the Wolves to win, while not being afraid to critique the home team.
Translation: They aren’t hopeless homers.
Petersen, who began with the Wolves as a radio analyst in 1998 and has been on television since 2003, did slide over to radio last season to work with Alan Horton once the first round was complete. It won’t be surprising if that happens again during these playoffs — if the Wolves can get past the Lakers.
The NBA long has allowed its teams to have their first-round games aired locally, while the networks such as ESPN and TNT had the national coverage and then took over exclusive rights in the second round.
None of this mattered for years as the Wolves made only one playoff appearance in a 17-season period from 2003-04 to 2020-21. But this is the fourth consecutive season in which Minnesota has qualified for the postseason and there’s no reason that streak should end anytime soon.
The Wolves already won’t have Grady and Petersen working Games 1 and 4 since those Sunday afternoon tilts both will be exclusive to ABC.
SBJ found that local telecasts accounted for 32 percent of in-market viewership for first-round playoff games last season, according to Nielsen data. That figure rose to 42 percent when the ABC exclusive games weren’t counted.
Considering how much the sports television landscape is changing, this step shouldn’t come as a surprise. Next season would mark the last one of the Wolves' agreement with FanDuel and it would not be surprising if they went in a different direction under the guidance of the NBA after that.
SBJ recently reported the NBA is negotiating a potential national streaming RSN with Amazon, YouTube, Apple and perhaps ESPN+, Roku or others. Even if that happens, it won’t mean the local broadcasters will work into the playoffs.
That will be a bummer for many Wolves fans who find comfort in listening to Grady and Petersen.
WILL NHL, WILD FOLLOW?
The NHL seems likely to follow the NBA’s lead when it comes to maximizing how much it can get for its next television contracts in the United States. However, there are three more years to go on the deals with ESPN/ABC and TNT Sports after this one.
No matter where the Wild’s local television and streaming rights are by that point — the team is in the final season of its contract with FanDuel — such a move will take a bite out of their local revenue. The NHL’s current national TV deal is for $4.5 billion over seven years and commissioner Gary Bettman will be looking for a substantial increase.