YouTube to Air NBA D-League Games

Will be most amount of live games on online video site with over 350 matchups beginning Friday

By Tim Baysinger -- Broadcasting & Cable, 11/20/2012 4:06:33 PM

The National Basketball Association's Developmental League (NBDL) will air games on YouTube this season, the two companies announced Tuesday.

The announced deal will put over 350 live games on the online video site, beginning Friday. The games will be available through the NBA D-League YouTube channel or the league's 16 team channels. Archived games will be available as well. The NBDL will feature the most live games on YouTube by a major professional sports league.

"The NBA's latest initiative with YouTube marks another milestone in our partnership and a great way to tip off the 12^th season of the NBA Development League," said NBA deputy commissioner Adam Silver. "By turning to our longtime partner, YouTube, we are able to bring the NBA D-League to basketball fans around the world, further expanding the league's growth and showcasing future NBA stars." 

The NBA was the first official professional sports league to partner with YouTube in 2005, launch its own channel on YouTube in 2007, and join their "Claim Your Content" program in 2007.  To date, more than 960 million videos have been viewed on the NBA Channel, making it the most popular sports channel on YouTube.