NBL Targets ‘Biggest Basketball Market In The World’ With New Facebook Streaming Deal

Under a new partnership between Facebook and the National Basketball League (NBL), a selection of games from the 2019-20 Hungry Jack’s NBL Season will be streamed live on Facebook Watch in the U.S. featuring NBA Draft prospects LaMelo Ball and RJ Hampton.

The partnership with Facebook will see 52 NBL games streamed on Facebook Watch via the NBL Facebook page, with an additional 23 regular-season games (one per round), finals and other highlights to be streamed in Australia and New Zealand.

Ball (Illawarra Hawks) and Hampton (SKY Sport New Zealand Breakers), who are apart of the NBL’s Next Stars program, are tipped to be selected in next year’s NBA Draft and NBL Commissioner Jeremy Loeliger says the partnership will generate massive exposure of the league.

“This partnership will ensure huge exposure for the NBL in the biggest basketball market in the world.

“It also reinforces our status as the best basketball league in the world outside of the NBA  during what is an incredibly exciting time for the sport in Australia and New Zealand.

“There is a lot of interest in Melo and RJ ahead of next year’s NBA draft but also the NBL and basketball here more broadly.”

Karren Rogers of Facebook Australia Sports Partnerships said: “We’re thrilled to bring the exciting action of the NBL to Facebook Watch.

“People in the U.S. – especially Ball in the Family fans – will enjoy watching two of basketball’s brightest young stars develop overseas, while those in Australia and New Zealand will now have a new way to watch and interact with the NBL.”

A record 13 Australians played in the NBA last season and 113 NBA players have played in the NBL since its inception in 1979.

The first Facebook Watch broadcast in Australia and New Zealand will be the opening game of the season on October 3, when Melbourne United and South East Melbourne Phoenix face off in the Throwdown.