Portland Trail Blazers’ New TV Deal Will Make Streaming Team More Difficult
The Portland Trail Blazers, will be switching TV homes starting in the 2021-22 season. Earlier this week, the Trail Blazers reached a four-year deal with ROOT Sports Northwest, the regional sports network, owned by the Seattle Mariners and AT&T. This will replace their current deal with NBC Sports Northwest, their TV home since the 2007-2008 season.
ROOT Sports Northwest also recently became the home of the expansion NHL team, Seattle Kraken, which will begin playing next season.
Unlike some RSNs like the NBC Sports RSNs, MSG, NESN, [AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh], and AT&T SportsNet Southwest – with ROOT Sports Northwest your options are limited. Currently, the only way to stream the channel is with the AT&T TV “Choice” plan for $84.99 a month.
| DTV STREAM | Fubo | Hulu | Philo | Sling TV | YouTube | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free Trial | Free Trial | Free Trial | Free Trial | Get 50% Off | Sign Up | |||
| $79.99 | $91.99 | $76.99 | $25 | $40 | $40 | $72.99 | ||
| Root Sports Northwest | + $29 | ✓ | - | - | - | - | - | |
Fortunately, there is an option.
The deal to bring ROOT Sports Northwest to streaming only came to fruition last July. In fact, it was the first time that Seattle Mariners games were able to be streamed by local fans.
fuboTV is the only other Live TV Streaming Service to carry some of the other AT&T-owned RSNs: AT&T SportsNet Southwest and [AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh]. They don’t carry AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain, which airs the Utah Jazz.
If you live outside of Portland (and the surrounding blackout area), you will be able to watch the games using NBA League Pass, the league’s out-of-market streaming service.
So while your streaming options may change by the time the Trail Blazers hit the court next season, for now, if you’re in Portland – you really only have one way to stream your team.