Turner Sports Readies Most Expansive NBA All-Star 2019 Experience in Charlotte
Editor’s note: NBA TV’s All-Star programming plans can be found by visiting http://bit.ly/19ASGNBATV
Turner to Exclusively Present Cross-Platform Coverage of All Marquee NBA All-Star Events Including the 68th NBA All-Star Game Featuring Team LeBron vs. Team Giannis – Sunday, Feb. 17, at 8 p.m. ET
Fan-Friendly Turner Attractions Include NBA on TNT American Express Road Show, Bleacher Report’s B/R x NC Event, an ELEAGUE Showcase & More
With basketball royalty descending on The Queen City, Turner is the destination for NBA All-Star 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Turner’s unrivaled premium content brands and platforms will be the exclusive home to all of the weekend’s marquee live events, alongside a dazzling array of on-the-ground, fan-friendly attractions that will celebrate the best of basketball.
Turner Sports is set to present more than 24 hours of NBA All-Star programming from Charlotte, culminating with the 68th NBA All-Star game presented by Kia – with Team LeBron squaring off against Team Giannis – Sunday, Feb. 17, at 8:20 p.m. ET. The NBA’s biggest stars will take center stage as TNT presents the game with commentary by Marv Albert alongside analysts Reggie Miller and Chris Webber and reporter Kristen Ledlow.
Simultaneously with the TNT presentation, TBS will provide an alternative viewing experience with additional camera angles and access to go along with a Players Only presentation featuring Turner basketball analysts and special guests.
Sunday night’s coverage will begin with the TNT NBA Tip-Off presented by Autotrader pregame show at 7 p.m., featuring the Sports Emmy Award-winning studio team of Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and O’Neal.
TNT’s live event coverage will also be highlighted by the 2019 MTN DEW ICE Rising Stars on Friday, Feb. 15, at 9 p.m. and the State Farm All-Star Saturday Night, Feb. 16, at 8 p.m., along with a special programming block leading into All-Star Saturday Night – including Team Shaq vs. Team Charles in an All-Star Motor Sports Challenge. A complete NBA All-Star programming guide is listed further below.
Bringing together some of the best of its unrivaled sports portfolio, Turner is delivering a full-court press of fan-friendly attractions and performances during NBA All-Star 2019 festivities in Charlotte, including:
NBA on TNT American Express Road Show
The NBA on TNT American Express Road Show will originate from the Fillmore at Charlotte’s Music Factory district, highlighted by live telecasts of TNT’s Inside the NBA (Thursday and Friday, Feb. 14-15) and live performances. The multi-day event will tip off with a performance by comedian and actor Chris Tucker – Thursday at 7:45 p.m. – with the first 15 minutes incorporated into that night’s Inside the NBA telecast. Musical performances during the weekend will be highlighted by Zac Brown Band on Saturday and Rae Sremmurd on Friday. American Express returns as the title sponsor for Road Show for a third year; additional supporting partners include Budweiser, Mtn Dew, Ruffles and Intel, which will be showcasing to attendees the NBA on TNT VR app experience powered by Intel® True VR.
B/R x NC
Bleacher Report will bring the hype and excitement of its wildly popular content and unmatched connectivity with millennial and Gen Z sports audiences to Charlotte through an unprecedented B/R x NC outdoor fan fest at Turner’s All-Star 2019 footprint at The Underground in the Music Factory complex. B/R x NC will be open to the public and celebrate the best of basketball with musical performances, non-stop hoops, art and style activations, local flavor food and culture. B/R’s House of Highlights will make its NBA All Star debut with an ‘optimized for Instagram’ space that will feature live programming, a gaming lounge and other activities that celebrate North Carolina’s rich basketball heritage.
ELEAGUE NBA 2K Playgrounds 2: All-Star Throwdown 2019 powered by Intel
ELEAGUE is partnering with 2K and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) to stage an NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 tournament at NBA All-Star 2019, in which rising stars and former legends will compete at Saber Interactive’s two-on-two arcade basketball game. The event will be hosted by Turner’s Casey Stern with analyst Dennis Scott, with live streaming coverage available via Twitch, B/R Live and ELEAGUE.com beginning Friday, Feb. 15, at 2 p.m. The event’s best moments will be captured for a special airing on TBS at 11:30 p.m. ET/PT.
Daily programming highlights of Turner’s NBA All-Star 2019 coverage include:
Thursday, February 14
- The network’s on-site coverage will tip off with the Sports Emmy Award-winning Inside the NBA presented by Kia studio team of Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal providing live pregame coverage at 7 p.m. ET, along with American Express Halftime Report updates and Inside the NBA post-game show.
- Thursday’s NBA on TNT presented by State Farm primetime telecast will feature the Oklahoma City Thunder, with All-Stars Russell Westbrook and Paul George, visiting the New Orleans Pelicans and Jrue Holliday at 8 p.m. Brian Anderson will call the game with Kevin McHale (analyst) and Lewis Johnson (reporter).
Friday, February 15
- TNT will televise the 2019 MTN DEW ICE Rising Stars on Friday, Feb. 15, at 9 p.m. The league’s most dynamic young players will take the court, including Luka Dončić of the Dallas Mavericks, Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers and Donovan Mitchell of the Utah Jazz.
- B/R’s Adam Lefkoe will provide play-by-play, joined by Charlotte Hornets’ forward Frank Kaminsky and reporter Ros Gold-Onwude.
- TNT’s Inside the NBA team of Johnson, Barkley, Smith and O’Neal will provide halftime and postgame coverage.
- Corresponding NBA on TNT VR powered by Intel True VR live coverage will also be available with Stephanie Ready, Richard “Rip” Hamilton and Ro Parrish on the call for Friday night. The free NBA on TNT VR app is available to download for Oculus Go and Samsung Gear VR headsets via the Oculus store. Fans can access the live experience whenever and wherever they want by logging in with the user name and password provided by their TV service provider.
Saturday, February 16
- TNT will feature State Farm All-Star Saturday Night, Feb. 16, starting at 8 p.m., with some of the league’s most exciting dunkers, three-point shooters and multi-faceted skills players on display, including All-Stars Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard, Khris Middleton, Kemba Walker, Dirk Nowitzki and defending champion Devin Booker in the MTN DEW Three-Point Contest, with All-Stars Nickola Jokić and Nikola Vučević, standout rookies Luka Dončić and Trae Young participating in the Taco Bell Skills Challenge.
- Kevin Harlan will call the All-Star Saturday Night action, joined by analysts Reggie Miller and Chris Webber and reporter LaForce. Defending dunk contest champion Donovan Mitchell and TNT’s Kenny Smith will join the announce team during the AT&T Slam Dunk.
- During the dunk contest, Barkley will join Kevin Garnett for a special live stream, available through the NBA on TNT handles on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
- The TNT NBA Tip-Off presented by Autotrader pregame show with Johnson, Barkley, Smith and O’Neal will begin at 7 p.m.
- NBA on TNT VR will be available for Saturday’s events with commentary by Ready, Hamilton, Parrish and Scott.
- TNT’s Saturday coverage will begin with the All-Star Motorsports Challenge, a drag race competition featuring Turner NBA personalities Barkley, Smith, O’Neal, Johnson, Webber, Miller, Candace Parker and Baron Davis, alongside NHRA pros John Force, Antron Brown, and Erica, Enders and Brittany Force at 5 p.m.
- The network will feature a 30-minute preview of this year’s All-Star interview – Dwyane Wade and Kevin Garnett: Players Only – at 6 p.m., with the full show available Monday, Feb. 18, at 9 p.m. on NBA TV.
- Finding Giannis – a special on 2019 All-Star Captain Giannis Antetokounmpo – will then follow at 6:30 p.m. TCL, the fastest growing TV brand in America, will serve as the presenting sponsor.
Sunday, February 17
- TNT will exclusively televise the 68th edition of the NBA All-Star Game 2019 presented by Kia with the night’s coverage beginning at 7 p.m. via TNT NBA Tip-Off presented by Autotrader pregame coverage.
- Albert, calling his 24th NBA All-Star Game, will provide play-by-play commentary with analysts Miller and Webber, along with reporter Ledlow. SHAPE \* MERGEFORMAT
- Alternate game coverage will be available on TBS, featuring additive camera angles and a Players Only presentation with Turner NBA analysts and special guests.
- Following the NBA All-Star Game, Inside the NBA presented by Kia with Johnson, Barkley, Smith and O’Neal will be televised on NBA TV.
- Ready, Hamilton, Parrish and Steve Smith will have the call for NBA on TNT VR’s presentation of the NBA All-Star Game.
- NBA Twitter Live will debut and provide an isolated camera view focused on one All-Star throughout the second half. The selected player will be voted on by fans in the first half and the feed will be available via the @NBAonTNT Twitter handle.
TNT Overtime
TNT Overtime will continue to offer fans a unique video companion experience throughout NBA All-Star 2019, including the Mtn Dew Kickstart Rising Stars, State Farm All-Star Saturday Night and the NBA All-Star Game presented by Kia.
Live streaming of NBA All-Star coverage airing on TNT will also be available via www.tntdrama.com/watchtnt and the Watch TNT app. Fans are able to access the content whenever and wherever they desire by logging in with the user name and password provided by their TV service provider.
About Turner Sports
Turner Sports, a division of Turner, is an industry leader in the delivery of premium sports content across all multimedia screens. Turner Sports’ television coverage includes the NBA, Major League Baseball, NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship, ELEAGUE and professional golf, along with the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League beginning in Summer 2018. The company also manages some of the most popular sports destinations across digital and social platforms including Bleacher Report and its top-rated app, NCAA.com and the critically-acclaimed NCAA March Madness Live suite of products, PGA.com and the Sports Emmy Award-winning PGA Championship LIVE, as well as an accompanying collection of mobile sites and connected device apps. Turner Sports and the NBA jointly manage NBA Digital, a robust collection of offerings including NBA TV, NBA.com, NBA LEAGUE PASS, the NBA App and NBAGLEAGUE.com. Turner Sports recently launched B/R Live, a premium live streaming sports platform that serves as the central hub for both the discovery and consumption of live sports content. The new streaming service allows fans to find and watch their favorite sports content anywhere, anytime and on the screen of their choice.
Visit the Turner Sports online pressroom for additional press materials; follow Turner Sports on Twitter at @TurnerSportsPR.
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