The National Basketball Association (NBA) and Amazon Web Services (AWS) have announced a landmark multi-year partnership that is set to redefine the way fans experience basketball.
At the heart of the collaboration is NBA Inside the Game, powered by AWS—a next-generation basketball intelligence platform that uses artificial intelligence to deliver real-time insights across the NBA App, NBA.com, and the league’s social media channels.
Alongside the digital innovation, Prime Video begins its landmark 11-year deal in 2025, becoming the exclusive home for 66 regular-season NBA games, the Emirates NBA Cup, NBA Playoffs, and—starting in 2026—WNBA coverage.
Raising the Standard of Fan Engagement
The partnership centers on using AWS’s AI infrastructure to unlock advanced statistics and new layers of storytelling for fans:
- Defensive Box Score → Quantifies defensive contributions that traditional stats overlook, tracking double teams, switches, and individual matchups.
- Shot Difficulty → Goes beyond make-or-miss to evaluate Expected Field Goal %, factoring in player orientation, defensive pressure, and positioning.
- Gravity → Measures the “invisible impact” of players who draw defensive attention and create space for teammates.
These new stats are processed using optical tracking data at 60 frames per second, turning movements into measurable insights.
Play Finder: Searchable Basketball Intelligence
A standout feature of the platform is Play Finder, powered by AWS AI tools like Amazon Bedrock and SageMaker. The tool makes NBA footage searchable at the level of individual plays, allowing fans, broadcasters, and even teams to analyze strategies, contextualize moments, and provide historical comparisons in real time.
Future versions of Play Finder will bring generative AI into play, allowing fans to explore tactical breakdowns in unprecedented depth directly on the NBA App.
Global Reach, Local Impact
The NBA is already one of the world’s most-followed sports leagues, with more than 2.5 billion followers across digital platforms. Through this partnership, AWS will enable the NBA to deliver personalized, in-language experiences, further accelerating basketball’s global footprint.
Prime Video will also integrate NBA League Pass, creating a single global hub for live and on-demand basketball content.
Why It Matters for the Sports Industry?
This deal is about more than broadcasting—it signals the future of fan engagement in sports. By embedding AI into the live game experience, the NBA is positioning itself as a data-first entertainment product, where storytelling is as critical as the action on the court.
What Other Sports Can Learn?
For other leagues and clubs, this NBA-AWS partnership highlights three key strategic takeaways:
- Data as Entertainment → Fans no longer just want raw stats; they want context, storytelling, and insights that make the game more immersive.
- Platform Thinking → By consolidating broadcasts, stats, and personalization across one ecosystem, the NBA is building a year-round digital stadium.
- AI for Strategy & Commerce → Beyond fans, these tools help teams, broadcasters, and sponsors create sharper narratives and monetization opportunities.
The question now is not whether AI will transform sports engagement, but how fast properties can adapt their commercial models to match the NBA’s lead.
Conclusion
The NBA’s new partnership with AWS and Prime Video is not just a broadcasting deal—it’s the start of an AI-powered era of basketball, where fans understand the game at a deeper level, sponsors gain richer engagement opportunities, and the league expands its global dominance.
Basketball is no longer just played on the court—it’s now coded, analyzed, and experienced through AI.
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