The Cavaliers may be built for a deep run, but finding their games is a whole different challenge.
According to Manny Soloway of Awful Announcing, Cleveland ranks dead last among the NBA’s 30 teams in accessibility of local television broadcasts for the 2026-27 season. The site evaluated each club’s setup by weighing streaming costs, cable and satellite availability, national TV games and matchups available free over the air.
The reason the Cavs landed at No. 30 is their new exclusive local streaming deal with DAZN. Cleveland is one of five NBA teams whose local broadcasts won’t be carried through traditional cable packages, and while DAZN has a season-long option priced at $120, that still doesn’t cover the full slate.
Awful Announcing reported that 59 Cavaliers games will be exclusive to streaming, with 10 more tied to separate national platforms. So even fans who subscribe to DAZN may still need additional services to catch every game. That’s the modern fan experience in 2026.
There is at least one small break in the cost-and-subscription maze: 15 local games are set to be simulcast over the air, so fans with an antenna can watch without paying extra. As Hoops Wire previously detailed, those broadcasts will air on WOIO (Channel 19) and WUAB (Channel 43), along with Rock Entertainment Sports Network.
Still, that’s a far cry from having most games in one easy spot, and Cleveland isn’t the only team dealing with this shift. The Pacers checked in at 29th in the rankings, followed by the Timberwolves, Spurs and Grizzlies, with all five teams using DAZN-centered local arrangements.
At the top of the list, the Bucks claimed No. 1 with 80 games available over the air. The Hawks were second, and the Suns followed behind them.
The bigger picture here is the ongoing shakeup in local media after the shutdown of the FanDuel-branded regional sports networks. Teams are trying to build new distribution models that work long term, but there’s a clear difference between getting games out there and making them simple for fans to find.
The Cavs may be aiming to be one of the last teams standing this spring. Their followers, though, could end up spending plenty of time just tracking down where to watch the journey.
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