Watching the Blazers on TV 23-24

[BigPuma]

Like many, I used to watch the Blazers on Root through comcast/infinity. Last year I kind of gave up on the blazers when they started tanking and cancelled my comcast and have been using a combination of streaming services and OTA DVR to meet my needs. My wallet is very happy with this change. I'm interested in watching the Blazers again this year and struggling finding any good options. I need to DVR many games so that was a requirement for me. Also interested in watching some other games so ESPN and TNT are important. Here is what I have found so far

1. If you live outside the Blazers blackout area for NBA league pass, obviously you just buy that for the season.
2. Comcast - I currently get internet from them for $56/month. Adding cable TV, sports package, and DVR would increase my bill to 168/month, so about $112 increase. This also gives you DVR, TNT and ESPN and in my experience picture quality is usually excellent. Some people report that if you haggle with them you might be able to get it for less.
3. Fubo - looks like it's about $85/month and includes ESPN and DVR but doesn't include TNT which is annoying for non-blazers games. I read some reviews that the UI is janky and the quality is not always great for watching on a large TV
4. Directv stream - package with Root is 99/month but going up to 108/month 11/5. Also get DVR, ESPN, TNT, locals. Didn't see any reviews about quality
5. League Pass with VPN - $16/month or $99/season plus cost of VPN. some people say this is super easy, others complained that it was difficult. Saw one person report that later last season league pass was forcing them to verify their location since a VPN was detected and it became a pain. Unclear how reliable this will be in the future. Obviously not totally ethical or legal.
6. League pass without VPN - $16/month or $99/season. looks like the blazers games are released 3 days after the game according to the fine print.
7. Pirated streams - seems like every message board has a couple people who say they can stream every game no problem with good quality, and many other people saying there are frequent needs to refresh, popup ads, and poor quality. Also, obviously not exactly legal and ethical

I'm honestly leaning toward doing league pass without VPN. I will just watch other teams I find interesting when I get the NBA itch, and catch blazers games either live, at a bar, or at a friend's house. Maybe watch some games on 3 day delay as well.

What are you guys doing?

[zzaj]

Ahoy, matey.

[Norm2953]

I'd get Direct TV stream

[ImABlazerFan]

I use fubo with a big TV without quality issues. I just deal with not having TNT. It works pretty well and I have the same DVR requirement as you.

[tester551]

Like many, I used to watch the Blazers on Root through comcast/infinity. Last year I kind of gave up on the blazers when they started tanking and cancelled my comcast and have been using a combination of streaming services and OTA DVR to meet my needs. My wallet is very happy with this change. I'm interested in watching the Blazers again this year and struggling finding any good options. I need to DVR many games so that was a requirement for me. Also interested in watching some other games so ESPN and TNT are important. Here is what I have found so far

1. If you live outside the Blazers blackout area for NBA league pass, obviously you just buy that for the season.
2. Comcast - I currently get internet from them for $56/month. Adding cable TV, sports package, and DVR would increase my bill to 168/month, so about $112 increase. This also gives you DVR, TNT and ESPN and in my experience picture quality is usually excellent. Some people report that if you haggle with them you might be able to get it for less.
3. Fubo - looks like it's about $85/month and includes ESPN and DVR but doesn't include TNT which is annoying for non-blazers games. I read some reviews that the UI is janky and the quality is not always great for watching on a large TV
4. Directv stream - package with Root is 99/month but going up to 108/month 11/5. Also get DVR, ESPN, TNT, locals. Didn't see any reviews about quality
5. League Pass with VPN - $16/month or $99/season plus cost of VPN. some people say this is super easy, others complained that it was difficult. Saw one person report that later last season league pass was forcing them to verify their location since a VPN was detected and it became a pain. Unclear how reliable this will be in the future. Obviously not totally ethical or legal.
6. League pass without VPN - $16/month or $99/season. looks like the blazers games are released 3 days after the game according to the fine print.
7. Pirated streams - seems like every message board has a couple people who say they can stream every game no problem with good quality, and many other people saying there are frequent needs to refresh, popup ads, and poor quality. Also, obviously not exactly legal and ethical

I'm honestly leaning toward doing league pass without VPN. I will just watch other teams I find interesting when I get the NBA itch, and catch blazers games either live, at a bar, or at a friend's house. Maybe watch some games on 3 day delay as well.

What are you guys doing?

Broadband League Pass

Also, there is nothing illegal about using a VPN. Honestly, it is probably better that you use it for all your internet activity regardless of what you are doing.

I understand the ethical argument against using a VPN. But that argument is rooted in the 1980's technology paradigm (ie - cable companies purchasing media rights to force customers to upgrade their packages) instead of the 2020's. Everyone complains how poorly these media companies treat their customers.... This is one way for the customer to fight back and force some change.

[RTG HD]

I recommend option 7 until the media rights are handled in a more reasonable way. I am willing to pay for content but it should not be handled like a hostage situation.

[monopoman]

Yep, I see nothing wrong with trying alternative means to watch games when Root sports is so damn hard to get. Though the Blazers have come forward and are very upset that Xfinity has moved it to a higher tier package. We will see if something comes of this, but it's bs how hard it is to watch your local NBA team when TV cable or dish is slowly dying.

As someone that has tried option #7 it's far better than people think just get a good ad blocker because the ads can be extremely annoying and potentially dangerous.

[DeBlazerRiddem]

Root sports sucks and I encourage no one to get them money, as customers we can only speak with our wallet.

[BigPuma]

Yep, I see nothing wrong with trying alternative means to watch games when Root sports is so damn hard to get. Though the Blazers have come forward and are very upset that Xfinity has moved it to a higher tier package. We will see if something comes of this, but it's bs how hard it is to watch your local NBA team when TV cable or dish is slowly dying.

As someone that has tried option #7 it's far better than people think just get a good ad blocker because the ads can be extremely annoying and potentially dangerous.

The Blazers "being upset" does nothing for me. They took the maximum money from Root sports, knowing that Root would have to maximize revenue to make it work financially. If the blazers actually put up some money to make games more available I will be impressed. Until then it is just empty words.

I think I might carefully dip my toes in #7. If that goes poorly I will use the free trial week of league pass and free trial week of fubo and then make a decision.

[Shem]

I made adjustments to my Xfinity bill to add the ultimate package that includes Root Sports and Root Sports+. In the end when working with a customer service rep, I'm now paying $2 less a month. So somethings you just have to be creative in your plan.

[Case2012]

I've been going with pirate streams for over a decade. I don't feel bad about it at all.

[zzaj]

I'll chime in again to say that the ONLY time I haven't sailed the seven seas was when you didn't need cable to watch games (yes, a long time ago) and a few years ago when Hulu had a deal with the NBA. That was great because you could rewatch every game in the league at your leisure and it was part of my upgraded Hulu package. In the in-between years of 'rabbit ears' to internet streaming I mostly watched in bars or went to games.

[Pattycakes]

So if you were going to stream

But not west, what direction would be the opposite of west?

Hint hint.

[m0ng0]

I have cut the cord on everything except discovery+ so I guess I'm good with the radio.

[Chanse503]

Just type in Reddit NBA stream live

[DaVoiceMaster]

What channel is Fox 12 Plus on Xfinity?

[monopoman]

Just type in Reddit NBA stream live

There actually is a great website that has links to every sporting event as it happens, with like 30 streams for each one to choose from with the best streams being at the top. That might get you NBA games but if you do watch other sports this will help you with that, while having the NBA also.

I can't really post it here but if someone messages me I will send it.

Also to discuss one way to do it that requires more hoops to jump through but is completely legit you can get league pass and a VPN which allows you to make it seem like you are in other countries. At that point you could watch any game you want, because they would think you were located in Sweden or some other European country based on your IP address.

[BigPuma]

I heard a rumor that Fubo is not too strict about sharing accounts, and you can watch on up to 3 screens at once. So if you can find 1 or 2 people to share with, Fubo becomes a reasonably economical choice at $43/month. I haven't tried it myself.

[JasonStern]

I plan on just catching the games streamed on NBA TV, nationally broadcast games (likely at a sports bar), and watching the highlight YouTube videos for the rest.

For those in the blackout area that want to watch games, consider getting a VPN and League Pass.

[Effigy]

I will be watching on Comcast. Going to get league pass too since it’s only $100 for the season.