It was only a matter of time. In recent years, Amazon Prime Video landed exclusivity rights to the NFL’s “Thursday Night Football” and WNBA showcases. As of Friday night, the behemoth has added NBA games to its live imprint.
The market effects might be far-reaching. The on-floor action should remain the same, which is good, because NBA ball is swaggering and synchronistic and altogether fascinating right now. The new broadcaster gets going with an old rivalry (Boston Celtics at New York Knicks), then hosts a duel between rising faces of the league (Minnesota Timberwolves at Los Angeles Lakers). Here’s what viewership needs to know ahead of Friday’s Prime exclusives.
You can stream other national TV and regional NBA games on Fubo (Stream Free Now).
NBA on Prime Video viewing guide for Friday
Watching in person? Get tickets on StubHub.
Celtics at Knicks
7:30 p.m.
Prime Video
Timberwolves at Lakers
10 p.m.
Prime Video
A new setup at Prime
Longtime NBA telecaster TNT is out. Prime is in, along with NBC/Peacock. Because of pro basketball’s latest media rights deal, NBA has new broadcast partners for the first time since 2002. This broadens the league’s reach, but it also brings new restrictions and additional apps to the TV rotation.
Prime has done its part by landing top-tier announcers. Ian Eagle and Kevin Harlan are two of the most recognizable voices in both basketball and football. They take lead play-by-play assignments, along with Eric Collins (the Hornets guy who’s always yelling) and Michael Grady (splitting between Prime and NBC).
Prime is set to broadcast the knockout rounds of this year’s NBA Cup, plus the Play-In Tournament and select playoff games. It also has the two NBA Europe games between the Orlando Magic and Memphis Grizzlies. Prime games are on Fridays throughout 2025-26, with Thursdays and Saturday afternoons added at midseason. Those broadcasts will have a series of new stats and data visualizations, like defensive box scores and player movement profiles.
Starting lineup of former NBA players now on Prime:
- Steve Nash (in-game analyst and studio)
- Dwyane Wade (in-game analyst and studio)
- Brent Barry (in-game analyst)
- Blake Griffin (studio)
- Dirk Nowitzki (studio)
The bench mob is fronted by five-time All-Star John Wall, plus shooting specialist/famous dad Dell Curry and Miami Heat lifer Udonis Haslem. Prime has also tapped a pair of WNBA luminaries for its coverage: Candace Parker for studio and in-game work, and Swin Cash for a unique “front office insider” position.
Celtics (0-1) at Knicks (1-0)
It was quite a scene when we last saw these two together. Back in May, New York outlasted Boston on its home floor to close out a second-round playoff series in six games. For the Knicks, this was euphoria decades in the making — Madison Square Garden hadn’t seen a conference finals berth since 2000. For the Celtics, the hurt was acute. Not only did their NBA title defense fall short, but Jayson Tatum ruptured his Achilles in the series loss.
The hosts return with the full core from their 2024-25 breakthrough. Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns were All-Star starters last season, while the “Wing Stop” trio (OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart) clocked labor-intensive minutes. Center Mitchell Robinson was an automatic rebound in the playoffs. New York finished the campaign with the league’s fifth-best offensive rating.
Of note, Tom Thibodeau no longer roams the Knicks’ sideline, despite the postseason success and his previous Coach of the Year bonafides. Thibodeau was canned in June, and after a protracted search for his replacement, Mike Brown was hired in July. Brown won his blue-and-orange debut on Wednesday night, thanks in part to Anunoby’s 24 points, 14 rebounds and three steals.
Boston starts without Tatum, but its championship fixtures Jaylen Brown, Derrick White and Payton Pritchard are ready to up their usage. The Celtics also acquired twitchy shooting guard Anfernee Simons for extra buckets. Head coach Joe Mazzulla will have to make the most of a thinned-out frontcourt, though. The team lost Al Horford (Golden State Warriors), Kristaps Porziņģis (Atlanta Hawks) and Luke Kornet (San Antonio Spurs) during the offseason. They’re a work in progress without Tatum, and they lost Wednesday’s first game by one point after allowing 42 in the fourth quarter.
Ian Eagle and Stan Van Gundy are on the call from Manhattan.
Season openers
- New York Knicks 119, Cleveland Cavaliers 111
- Philadelphia 76ers 117, Boston Celtics 116
Timberwolves (1-0) at Lakers (0-1)
Anthony Edwards adorns national TV commercials, league promo material and “dunk of the year” compilations. He’s lacing up for his age-24 season.
Luka Dončić is an international sensation with five All-NBA nods and the top-selling jersey in the league. He’s still just 26 years old. Friday’s late tipoff is headlined by two young phenoms with claims as the face of basketball.
The Wolves had zero playoff series wins from 2005-23, two decades of indignities and afterthoughts. With Edwards hitting his prime, Minnesota now has back-to-back Western Conference finals runs. Last season’s Timberwolves were fourth in net rating, thanks to efficient turns from Julius Randle and Jaden McDaniels. Rudy Gobert is the hulking starting center; Naz Reid is the smooth-shooting backup. Chris Finch has installed good vibes and a deep bench. Edwards scored 41 points in Wednesday’s opener, capping an impressive second-half rally.
The Lakers counter with less depth but more panache. LeBron James is out with sciatica, so Dončić has the greenest of green lights in the early going. He put up 43 points in Tuesday’s opening night, though L.A. still lost by 10. Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura are capable along the perimeter, but a lot of attention now falls to new center Deandre Ayton. The No. 1 pick in 2018 (Dončić was No. 3) seeks some career reclamation.
Kevin Harlan takes play-by-play in L.A. Hall of Fame hoopers Dwyane Wade and Candace Parker join him for analysis.
Season openers
- Minnesota Timberwolves 118, Portland Trail Blazers 114
- Golden State Warriors 119, Los Angeles Lakers 109
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