![\"FILE](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/OKOY7FK5NRATHD7C75S2C5JNV4.jpg\")
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FILE – A crowd attends a Blazers game at the Moda Center on Oct. 22, 2025 in Portland, Ore.<\/p>\n
Saskia Hatvany \/ OPB<\/p>\n
Beaverton resident Kathy Herrick has been keeping up with the Portland Trail Blazers: She\u2019s seen almost every game this season either on television or in person.<\/p>\n
This is an exciting year for the team. On Sunday<\/a> night, the Blazers beat the Sacramento Kings, securing the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference and a spot in the NBA Play-In Tournament<\/a>. And tonight at 7 p.m. PST, the Blazers will face the Phoenix Suns in Portland\u2019s first postseason matchup in five years. <\/p>\n It\u2019s a significant accomplishment for the Blazers, who\u2019ve been stuck at home after the regular season since 2021, and Herrick was excited to watch. But then she found out the play-in would only be shown on Amazon Prime Video, a streaming service she doesn\u2019t have.<\/p>\n \u201cI was really disappointed because I\u2019ve been very engaged with the games this year, and for many years, and we finally reached a promised land and we\u2019re being shoved out the door,\u201d Herrick said.<\/p>\n Amazon Prime Video has exclusive rights to stream the play-in as part of its 11-year media rights agreement with the NBA. That deal was made in 2024 and goes into effect this season. <\/p>\n What does that mean if you want to catch the game? You need an Amazon Prime subscription to watch the play-in. If you don\u2019t, you\u2019ll need to find a friend, family member or local bar that does.<\/p>\n That fact has stirred frustration among fans, especially as the Portland team inches toward the playoffs.<\/p>\n \u201cI guess spiritually, emotionally, in terms of the culture, it\u2019s a pretty important step because it at least opens the door to getting into the dance,\u201d Blazer\u2019s Edge <\/a>editor-in-chief Dave Deckard said.<\/p>\n But for Deckard, the new agreement ultimately leads some fans to feel that the league, and its streaming partners, doesn\u2019t care about them. <\/p>\n \u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter what the fan feeling is,\u201d Deckard said. \u201cWhen\u2019s the last time you felt a business really cared about you? They have a product. You want it? You have to jump through the hoops to get it.\u201d<\/p>\n Not everyone wants to jump through those hoops.<\/p>\n \u201cI already pay a lot of money to Comcast, so I\u2019m not interested in putting more money into media,\u201d Herrick said about getting a Prime membership. \u201cI think I might try to just listen to [Tuesday\u2019s game] on the radio on my computer and look at the play by play.\u201d<\/p>\n Amazon isn\u2019t the only big player here. Already this season, viewers have had to figure out where to watch games among multiple services, such as Peacock and ESPN, which also have streaming rights to certain games. <\/p>\n