It isn’t but clear whether or not NBC will stroll away with rights to NBA video games starting subsequent 12 months (the league continues to be holding talks with present rightsholder Warner Bros. Discovery, although NBC made an aggressive bid for its bundle).
However one factor is now clear: “Roundball Rock” shall be making a comeback.
The music, composed by John Tesh, was the anthem of The NBA on NBC from 1990 till the community misplaced NBA rights in 2002.
Tesh was a visitor on The Dan Le Batard Present Tuesday, and he was requested whether or not the community had reached out to him about re-licensing the music.
“They’ve, really, yeah,” Tesh stated when requested by the radio host a few reach-out from the community. “Nothing agency, however they stated, ‘Hey, are you able to keep frosty on this?’ like a Navy SEALs factor.”
Actually, Tesh added that he was planning to re-record “Roundball Rock” subsequent month, with a possible return to TV set for July when NBC will host the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“We’re really speaking proper now about licensing it to them for the Olympics in Paris, which is all the time nice,” Tesh stated. “On the finish of June, we’re heading to Nashville, we’ve obtained a full orchestra on maintain, we’re gonna re-record it. I believe it nonetheless sounds nice, however I wished to make a number of modifications, perhaps open up the center. Possibly we’ll ship it to you guys. You possibly can flip it into an EDM observe.”
The return of “Roundball Rock” to NBC — even when only for the Olympics — comes because the NBA is closing in on new TV rights offers. Present accomplice Disney and ESPN is claimed to have labored out a deal for the “A” bundle of video games — together with the NBA Finals on ABC — inside its unique negotiating window.
The league’s different present media accomplice, Warner Bros. Discovery’s TNT Sports activities, didn’t exit its window with a deal. Subsequently, stories have indicated that Amazon has secured a deal for a “C” bundle of video games, with NBC Sports activities making an aggressive bid for the “B” bundle, providing greater than twice what WBD is at the moment paying the league, for fewer video games.
WBD continues to be in talks with the league, although if the NBA chooses NBC’s provide, WBD could have the flexibility to match it. It was vital sufficient for WBD to say eventually week’s upfront presentation in New York.
“Earlier than I shut, I need to point out a subject on everybody’s thoughts: The NBA,” TNT Sports activities chairman Luis Silberwasser stated. “We’ve loved a profitable partnership with the NBA for 40 years, and we look ahead to one other season, and reaching an settlement that is smart for all of the events.”
NBC Sports activities, it appears, is already able to rock, turning to Tesh within the occasion they’re able to convey the NBA again to its community, and to Peacock.