The Pelicans are “not available on YouTube TV and Hulu Live,” two of the major live TV streaming platforms, but the platform they are on, Bally Sports+, has been found to be "unreliable" by many users, according to Christian Clark of the New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE. Bally Sports has partnerships “with 13 NBA teams,” and fans across the country have reported “similar issues" with Bally's direct-to-consumer streaming option. Bally Sports has “experienced widespread outages early in the NBA season for reasons that remain unclear.” Before the start of the 2022-23 season, the Pelicans decided to renew their partnership with Bally Sports, and Pelicans President Dennis Lauscha said that making games "more accessible was a 'gigantic priority.'" Clark noted the Pelicans' five-year deal with Bally Sports has a “team option to get out of the deal after three years.” But it now appears the Pelicans “will be able to dissolve their partnership with Bally Sports after two years if they choose.” A federal bankruptcy judge on Wednesday “approved a plan that ensures bankrupt Bally Sports will continue broadcasting NBA games through the end of this season.” At the end of the 2023-24 campaign, each of the NBA teams Bally Sports has partnerships with “will get its local rights back.” That means the Pelicans will "get another opportunity this summer to address their accessibility issues.” Pelicans games are available on League Pass to everyone “except fans who live in the New Orleans market because of blackout rules” (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 11/19).
