Griffin Media has signed a deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder basketball team to move nearly 70 regular-season, locally-televised games to free broadcast TV this season.
Of the 67 games covered by the agreement, 63 will be distributed through Griffin-owned independent station KSBI (Channel 52) in Oklahoma City and participating pay television providers, including Charter’s Spectrum TV and DIRECTV. Six games will also be broadcast free over the air on KSBI and CW affiliate KQCW (Channel 19) in Tulsa.
The six games are scheduled for November 4 against Cleveland, November 20 against New Orleans, December 18 at Charlotte, January 15 against Utah, March 10 at Toronto and March 24 at Phoenix. Four additional games will air on CBS affiliates KWTV (Channel 9) in Oklahoma City and KOTV (Channel 6) in Tulsa. Those broadcasts are scheduled for October 31, November 28, January 18 and April 9.
In total, 10 Thunder games will be available free over the air in the two markets, with the remaining games distributed through participating television providers or the team’s streaming service.
The agreement is part of the newly-established Thunder Gameday Network, developed through a partnership involving Griffin Media and the NBA. Previously, Oklahoma City Thunder games were offered on FanDuel Sports Network, the cable channel that operated in the past under different names like Bally Sports Network and Fox SportsNet.
“The changing landscape of local and regional TV sports provided us the opportunity to reimagine our broadcast distribution and create the Thunder Gameday Network,” Dan Mahoney, the Vice President of Broadcasting for the Thunder, said in a statement over the weekend.
Mahoney said the arrangement was designed to make games available through multiple platforms, including streaming, cable, satellite and free television.
In addition to broadcast distribution, Oklahoma City Thunder games will also be available through Thunder Plus (stylized as Thunder+), a new streaming platform that will offer locally-televised match-ups for a small subscription fee. That arrangement allows local basketball fans to watch games on free broadcast TV or a streaming platform, however they’d like.
“As a locally owned company, we are proud to continue and expand our partnership with the Oklahoma City Thunder,” Wade Deaver, the President of Griffin Media, said in a statement.
Griffin will also produce a 30-minute pregame program from its studios before each game, featuring its local sports personnel and members of the Thunder’s broadcasting team. Contributors will include KWTV Sports Director Toby Rowland, KOTV Sports Director John Holcomb, Thunder Reporter Steve McGehee and KWTV Sports Reporter Evan Kamikow.
