Report: Denver will be able to watch Nuggets and Avs Round 1 playoff games
Apr 11, 2023, 10:14 AM | Updated: 10:23 am
The ongoing dispute between Altitude TV and Xfinity / Comcast has frustrated Nuggets and Avalanche fans for years.
Games haven’t been available to a large portion of the Denver market, blacking out the defending Stanley Cup champions and back-to-back MVP.
However, some good news dropped on Tuesday morning when it comes to the upcoming playoffs for both teams. The Denver Post’s Mike Singer is reporting everyone will be able to watch national TV games, with no threat of a blackout from Kroenke Sports and Entertainment.
League source: All 1st-round games for the #Nuggets and #Avs will be broadcast in a side-by-side format on TNT/TBS/ESPN/2 AND Altitude. No 1st-round games will be blacked out in the Denver market. Only exception is for ABC-exclusive games, which are widely available anyway.
— Mike Singer (@msinger) April 11, 2023
TNT and ESPN games had never been blacked out before, but that changed on Sunday night when an Avalanche and Ducks game got that treatment. It left fans frustrated and confused, and worried about Round 1 of the playoffs. Altitude TV will broadcast those games for both the Nuggets and Avs, but so will the national outlets.
Singer did receive a few questions about possible NBATV blackouts, and clarified those will be on as well. If the Nuggets play the Lakers in Round 1, that shouldn’t be an issue, but games against the Timberwolves, Pelicans or Thunder could get the NBATV treatment.
That was a potential big issue when the Nuggets / Blazers Game 5 showdown in 2021 was on NBATV, but the blackout was lifted so the Denver market could tune in to the game. It’ll be the same way this year.
Ultimately it’s kind of crazy that a dispute that started in the summer of 2019 is still ongoing, but here we are. The biggest thing is the 2023 Round 1 games will be available on national TV according to Singer, and that’s a win no matter what happens on the court and the ice.
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