The NBA and Twitch have reached a deal to broadcast G League games

Photo: Twitch

The NBA and Amazon's Twitch have reached a deal to broadcast G League games on the live streaming video platform, marking the first time a major sports organization has partnered with Twitch.  

Starting December 15th, up to six G League games per a week will be streamed. Included in the broadcast will be interactive statistic overlays, a fan-loyalty program to reward viewers who engage, and a co-streaming option for select Twitch personalities and basketball fans to provide live commentary. After each live broadcast, the games will be available on demand. 

Besides being a place to develop basketball talent, the G League has been a platform for the NBA to experiment, using it to test rules, technological innovations, and equipment. For an example, this season the league tried out a four-person referee crew, added a Coach's Challenge, and a two-minute overtime period. 

If there is significant success with the streaming of G League games, there is a great chance that major sports organization especially the NBA will go down this route in the future in some form. In fact, during a recent interview with Recode, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said that he wanted NBA games to look more like a video game and used Twitch as an example. 

SOURCE: G League