Troy Renck: Nuggets' alphabet soup NBA playoffs TV schedule rips off fans

DENVER - The Nuggets' alphabet soup TV playoff schedule is an ABCDEFU to fans.

When it popped up on social media on Tuesday night, there was a collective groan. At a time when the league should be uniting its audience, it traffics in fragmentation and causes frustration.

Want to fully appreciate Nikola Jokic's pursuit of a second championship? In your streams.

There is no more compelling first-round series than Nuggets-Timberwolves (Sorry, Lakers' fans, it is true). This is a rivalry born out of thrown chairs, tossed heating pads, trash talk, breathtaking performances and a Game 7 meltdown.

It is must-watch TV. If you can figure out how to watch.

The first four games are a maze of Amazon Prime, NBC/Peacock and ABC. I'm looking forward to calling my wife and explaining how to toggle back and forth between Prime and cable. And my parents have no chance of figuring it out.

The tanking has already compromised the league this season. Now, streaming is tainting the postseason.

Where is the line when chasing every last dollar doesn't make sense?

Who goes through more hoops? The basketball or the fans?

In September, commissioner Adam Silver seemed detached from reality when asked about the rising cost of watching a season of NBA games. He said there are enough free games on broadcast TV, and noted that the league is a snackable product that can be digested through highlights.

Is this the advice to the audience? Watch dunks on your phone while you doomscroll?

So, it should come as no surprise that the disconnect continues in April.

The NBA is taking a victory lap over its best TV ratings in 24 years. What the league fails to explain in the fine print is that it took all of its cable contests and shoved them onto NBC. Of course, they were going to get a spike.

Arguing that the league is healthy through this lens is a mistake. It should be a warning flag, especially when Steph Curry and Kevin Durant, two of the most recognizable players, are nearing the end of their careers.

All of the sports leagues continue to expand playoff fields to add games because it creates TV inventory to package. The NFL now plays on every day of the week, but Tuesday, farming out games to Netflix and YouTubeTV.

Gambling, fantasy sports and a remarkably loyal audience leave football immune from the consequences of greed.

The NBA is not in this position.

The league's nightly product, featuring a third of the franchises rolling out G League show ponies and another third resting stars, was embarrassing. Bam Adebayo scored 83 points. Any questions?

The playoffs offer a life raft. Good on good. Teams are motivated to win. And yet you need an IT guy and a credit card to find them.

It is ridiculous. When is enough enough?

A bells-and-whistles Amazon Prime membership runs $14.99 per month. Don't want free shipping for packages? Then the cost is $8.99.

The second Nuggets game will be televised nationally on NBC. Thank goodness. The NFL forced my hand to purchase Peacock a few years ago. Outside of "Ted," the inventory was uninspiring, especially given that "Dateline" is available on multiple cable channels. There was no reason to keep Peacock, even with the Olympics coverage, for $16.99 (premium plus) or à la carte at $7.99.

Game 3 returns to Prime. Send yourself a vat of Goof Off to remove paint from your living room and the memory of paying for the subscription.

Game 4 is on ABC. Right on. Oh, wait, Xfinity dropped the channels owned by E.W. Scripps when the agreement expired on March 31. Denver 7 is on the list. What fun. As if the Altitude blackout on Comcast for nearly six years didn't suffice.

That was a punch to the throat. What is another kick in the (bleep)?

Yes, there are ways to bypass this with a digital antenna. But those cost between $20 and $60. Should this be necessary, especially for families already getting pinched at the grocery store and gas pump?

Covering sports for a living, I understand how TV operates as the hub of the professional sports universe. The mind-boggling revenue matters. But consumers are growing sick and tired of searching for games, only to reach for their wallets.

And somehow, this April, it has gotten worse.

This represents the first time that local regional sports networks are no longer permitted to broadcast the opening round. This was the safety net. As the Nuggets and Clippers bounced around from ESPN and TNT a year ago, the local constant was Altitude.

The RSNs are relegated to pre- and postgame shows.

Mike Breen, the voice of the NBA Finals, expressed his disappointment with the national exclusivity when he signed off on his main job during the Knicks broadcast last weekend.

"I personally think it's a poor decision," Breen said. "Fans want to hear their teams' announcers, at least in the first round. Because, for so many of us, and all of my favorite teams growing up, the home team announcers, they become part of the family, such a big part of why you root for the team."

The NBA thinks global, not local. It wants a worldwide audience, while making it tougher for those in the States to consume the product.

It should not cost fans another $800 or $1,500 a year to watch their favorite sports teams in the NFL, NBA and MLB.

It is expensive and exhausting.

The NBA doesn't care that it makes it more difficult to see the Nuggets.

That is why the criticism of the viewing experience must remain so loud and clear.

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This story was originally published April 16, 2026 at 11:37 PM.