The fans are complaining that the NBA is pricing them out of following their teams. In response, the league commissioner said, “There’s a huge amount of our content that people can essentially consume for free. I mean, this is very much a highlights-based sport. So Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, you name it.” Do Adam Silver’s comments bring relief to the viewers? Absolutely not. The fans want accessibility at an affordable price, but it seems like that’s not the vision from the league’s higher-ups.

“Adam Silver does not like regional sports networks, and he has made that ridiculously clear.” Damien Barling believes the RSN is the next market that the league commissioner is targeting. “I’m of the belief what he wants to do is create some sort of subscription service where you subscribe to something to watch your Sacramento Kings play every night. I don’t know that for sure, but I think that’s what he wants.” This will be similar to League Pass, but will be restricted to one team’s entire games on demand.

“I don’t think this would be anything extravagant $50. I don’t think it would be anything like that, but I do think we’d be looking at 10 to 15, maybe $25 to watch the Sacramento Kings play every year.” $25 to watch your favorite NBA team and players in action sounds like a sweet deal. But here is a catch. “I’m not sure you’re understanding fully what I’m saying. I’m saying Amazon and NBC and all of that stuff still exist. But if you want to see the Kings versus the Wizards on a Tuesday night, you have to subscribe to this league pass in addition to everything else you already subscribe to see them“.

Barling has an opinion that Adan Silver’s plan to replace the RSN will not lead to friction after the NBA’s landmark $76 billion media deal, which placed games across ESPN, NBC, including Peacock, and Amazon Prime. Naturally, when the billion-dollar deal was signed, those companies needed subscribers. That’s why on ESPN 1320, Barling concluded that it will be “an added expense” for the fans. Let’s add more context to it.

The financial strain is real for everyday fans. League Pass alone runs $13.99 a month, but that’s just the beginning. Combine it with YouTube TV, Peacock Premium, and Prime Video, and the costs soar close to $120 monthly. In fact, the traditional method isn’t cheap either–often pushing totals beyond $140. This has also contributed to the local broadcast dip, which is a result of the declining number of linear households. The reported reduction is roughly 2.7 million pay TV subscribers between September and March, according to Nielsen, Evoca TV, and other firms.

League executives are with Adam Silver on this plan

Last year, when the 11 year $76 billion deal was getting finalized, Charles Barkley criticized venomously. “Well, I think that you got greedy players and greedy owners… We should never put money above the regular fan. Everybody can’t afford streaming.” Unfortunately, that situation is coming true despite the NBA icon’s plea. The NBA announced the full schedule for the 2025–26 season last month, which includes an additional 75 national games. By February, around when football season ends, there will be a national NBA game on every day of the week between the partners. But there is a catch.

The count includes exclusively streamed games. Nothing for the regional sports networks. According to a report by Tom Friend of Sports Business Journal, “all signs point to a 2027-28 national RSN launch date.” Because that season, close to 18 NBA clubs will be available to pool their rights together and create a national streaming platform. Per Friend, there seems to be an appetite among many franchise executives to get this done. Some of those over-the-air teams have been disappointed in the level of reach they’ve been able to attain,” a league governor told SBJ.

Another one added, “I’m just praying there’s a template for a national deal soon.” This also stems from the fact that the RSN revenue has decreased. The Bucks, Cavs, Hawks, and Heat all received between $7 million and $14 million less than what their deals paid in 2023 before Diamond Sports Group’s deal, which went bankrupt. So buckle up, fans, it’s time to probably arrange funds for the RSN. Or stick to what commissioner Adam Silver said–watch just highlights.