CBS Sports' deal comes after the Big3's two-year contract with Fox Sports was not renewedGETTY IMAGES
CBS this summer will "air more than 20 hours" of Big3 hoops coverage, a slate that "includes the June 22 season opener and the Sept. 1 league championship game," according to Anthony Crupi of AD AGE. Additionally, CBS Sports Network will "carry up to 25 hours of live action" over the course of the Big3's 11-week season. Meanwhile, the league has also "lined up two key sponsors in Adidas and Toyota, both of which will roll out activations throughout the upcoming season." Big3 earlier this year announced that its two-year rights deal with Fox had "not been renewed, noting that in the wake of the post-Disney re-org, a disproportionate chunk of the media company's cash flow would be derived from the Fox News assets." Big3 co-Founder Jeff Kwatinetz went on to "suggest that Fox may have elected against re-upping" with the Big3 in "retaliation for the league's interest in bidding" on the 21 Fox RSNs being sold by Disney. However, Fox has "denied that the RSN auction played any role in its decision." The new rights deal for the Big3 "officially kicks in with CBS Sports Network's live coverage of the league's spring draft" set for May 1 (ADAGE.com, 4/4).
