In the sports world, distribution power is once again the coin of the realm—which means, among other things, that content bundles are back. To wit: ESPN is distributing MLB’s out-of-network games this season, Amazon is all in on League Pass following its new deal with the NBA, and even Comcast is repositioning Peacock as a potential aggregator in this new streaming era rather than relying solely on the NFL season and the latest kids’ movie to keep the machine humming.

Now, as my pal John Ourand first reported last month, Adam Silver and the NBA may start shopping a national “local” streaming package for a number of teams whose regional sports networks are collapsing—a product that could fetch billions in rights fees. It would mark the first time a package of in-market rights has been made available as a streaming add-on, but there are signs that audiences are interested in this kind of R.S.N. replacement. Last year, according to Playfly Insights, about 15 percent of the NBA’s local broadcast audience watched through streaming apps—a small number, sure, but one that was in the single digits not too long ago. Meanwhile, a separate report from Hub Entertainment Research found that 34 percent of NBA fans said streaming had made it somewhat or much easier to find games, 43 percent found no difference, while 23 percent said it made things more difficult.

So, who are the frontrunners in the race for the NBA’s recovered local rights? There are several important dynamics at play, including how to deal with local ad inventory (an important and elusive piece of the puzzle for streamers), complicated by the regional sports network structure. But it’s a challenge that Google and Amazon would relish. Other ambitious potential bidders that are hungry for active and stable fanbases, like DAZN and ESPN Unlimited, may also lunge at the opportunity to become the gateway for tens of millions of fans across the country. Who should Silver choose?

But don’t discount Google’s interest in the right package at the right price. A collection of local sports rights serving audiences around the country—and a fatter slice of local ad inventory amid the mass migration from linear TV to connected TVs—is certainly an intriguing proposition for YouTube C.E.O. Neal Mohan.

After all, this year, nearly 20 percent of all local TV ad spend will be allocated to connected TVs—and YouTube is already projected to be one of the biggest beneficiaries, potentially capturing nearly 12 percent of total CTV ad revenues (roughly $9.2 billion) in 2026, according to eMarketer. This tracks with YouTube’s continued encroachment on TV sets: It commands roughly 12.5 percent of all connected TV viewing time in the U.S., which is up two percentage points year over year, per Nielsen.

But ad revenue is only part of the equation. Christian Oestlien, YouTube’s head of its subscription business, and Justin Connolly, its head of sports, have seen an opening to disrupt most of the linear distribution infrastructure as the cable system continues to crumble, which requires exclusive, high-demand events like NFL games, curated packages (like the skinny bundles), and even options like a nationalized local rights package for the NBA.

While surveying their respective fiefdoms, ESPN’s Jimmy Pitaro and NBCU’s Matt Strauss seem to have reached the same conclusion: There are only so many league rights packages capable of moving the subscriber needle. Broadly speaking, both executives have focused on establishing themselves as entry points into that programming rather than their exclusive home. Pitaro has said publicly that he wants ESPN to be the central hub connecting viewers to games that the network doesn’t actually air.

In any case, the biggest hurdle facing both ESPN and Peacock is technology. The companies that thrive during the next generation in streaming will rely on advanced infrastructure, and while everyone has grand tech ambitions, few have the culture, talent, and capital to execute them—and Disney and Comcast are far behind their multitrillion-market-cap peers. Anyway, given ESPN’s deal with MLB, Pitaro might pass on this bundle to focus on MLB’s analogous package, which is rumored for 2028. But Comcast, with its cable distribution network, could be a dark horse—especially given its new, $2 billion-a-year commitment to the NBA.

DAZN’s Shay Segev has made no secret of his interest in consolidating these diminishing local sports rights as part of a larger play to become a major force in the U.S. sports market. Last year, DAZN signed a deal to sublicense 38 Spanish-language UEFA Champions League games—on top of spending $1 billion (backed by Saudi money) to become FIFA’s official World Cup global broadcast partner. But the most aggressive move came with the collapse of Main Street Sports, home to local rights for 13 of the NBA’s 30 teams.

As Ourand has reported over recent months, DAZN came in hard last December with a significant cash investment in Main Street Sports Group, hoping to integrate the FanDuel Sports Network streamer with DAZN and secure an immediate foothold. That deal ultimately fell apart—which worked to Silver’s advantage in assembling enough teams to make a nationalized local streaming hub worthwhile for prospective buyers.

Nevertheless, Segev has the financial firepower to persuade Silver to fragment his rights further and bring a new streamer into the mix. Ultimately, though, DAZN is a relatively small player—and the NBA is hardly in growth mode. It’s not the NFL, and Silver’s priority after securing $77 billion just a few years ago may be keeping core local fans happy by putting games on accessible platforms they already use, rather than chasing the highest bidder—if that bidder turns out to be DAZN.

Regardless, it looks as though the NBA may be headed for another windfall—right under the wire. As everyone knows, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is preparing to extract new deals from his partners, one by one. NBA local rights might seem like a steal by comparison.

Thanks, Julia. See you all on Thursday.

John