Hoops icons Steve Nash, Kyle Lowry headline NBA on Prime’s Canadian expansion

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NBA on Prime has expanded north of the border and Canadian basketball fans will see some familiar faces on the broadcasts.

One year after debuting in the United States and countries around the globe, NBA on Prime arrives with Friday night double-headers throughout the season, with Canadian icon Steve Nash reprising his role as an in-game and studio analyst. What’s new is Kyle Lowry, widely regarded as the greatest Toronto Raptor of all-time, joining the star-studded lineup which also includes the likes of Dirk Nowitzki, Blake Griffin, John Wall, Udonis Haslem and Candace Parker.

Select Friday games will air exclusively on Amazon Prime Video as a long-term partnership with the NBA, which will run through the 2035-36 season tips here.

New blood to broadcast team

Nash is excited that Canada is now involved. “It’s great for me, it’s fun to have a connection to my friends and family and everyone back home,” Nash told Postmedia in a recent interview. Adding Lowry to the mix also had the former Phoenix Suns superstar smiling. “For us to have him join our crew is a lot of fun. We’re excited to have new blood and Kyle is going to be up there with the best (analysts),” Nash said.

Griffin echoed those sentiments after first warning Lowry he might be in for some initiation.

“You know what, We’re going to do a lot of rookie hazing,” Griffin told Postmedia when asked about Lowry, before getting serious. “It’ll be really cool having another point guard perspective,” Griffin said. “It’s always great hearing from Steve, just in terms of how he thinks the games. That was one of my favourite parts, honestly. Last year, was, not even just like on the camera, but when we’re in the green room watching the games and just getting to sit and talk basketball with Udonis Haslem, who played 400 years in the NBA, (a slight exaggeration)  and Dirk, one of the greatest bigs of all time, and Steve, one of the greatest point guards, two-time MVP,” Griffin said.

“So adding Kyle with all that experience is so fun for me because getting to ask those guys questions and pick their brains on stuff was like an ultimate fan experience.”

Greivis Vasquez spent parts of two seasons backing up Lowry at the start of the Raptors’ We the North era. Now he’s a big part of Prime Video’s Latin American NBA coverage and teammates again, in a way, with Lowry.

“I think it’ll be funny and interesting,” Vasquez said of Lowry’s work, which began with an interview with new NBA champion Jalen Brunson following NBA on Prime’s first games of the season Friday.

“I think a lot of young players gonna learn a lot. That’s the good thing about doing TV. You’re able to have access to this next generation, so you’re able to teach the game the right way,” Vasquez told Postmedia. “He’s going to be outstanding.”

Lowry will try to take after Nash, who has seamlessly shifted into media work.

“Anytime you’re around him, you just learn so much about the game,” said Jared Stacy, Amazon’s VP of global live sports production, which includes the NHL on Prime, now in its second year. “He sees it in a different way than maybe anybody ever. He played at such a high level to win two MVPs at his size at a different time in the league … It’s just so fun to have him in the green room, have him on our show, and and I think he just brings a lot of unique insight,” Stacy said.

As will Lowry. “Kyle is a character,” Stacy said. “Consummate pro, consummate teammate. Twenty years of NBA wisdom to share with everybody, and the way he played the game, he’s so cerebral. He has a lot to say. He’s a very opinionated guy in a fun way, and I think he’s just a natural fit to what we’re trying to do,” he said.

“And I think there’s so much value coming right off the court and into our lineup because he knows every single player in the league. He can tell you how they game-planned against certain guys, he can tell you what it was like to defend certain players … That’s a really unique thing to get a guy right off the floor and give you that insight (from) so close to the game.”

What’s included

Many of the bells and whistles found in Prime’s NHL broadcasts in Canada (and from other leagues they broadcast from around the world) will be included. Such as a feature called Rapid Recap which allows viewers who missed part of a game to catch up in a two minute, AI-generated highlight package (or they can just start from the beginning), broadcasts produced in native 1080p HDR video and 5.1 surround sound, complete with real-time stats and information. Those who bundle other subscriptions like NBA League Pass or Sportsnet or TSN will also have other multi-view options to watch multiple games at once.

“Part of the the benefit here is having Amazon’s global production and technology, and being able to bring that global product and technology to Canadian fans,” said Mark Shopiro, the head of Prime Video Canada. “(1080PHDR) is a very, very high standard and an incredible image quality,” he said. “We got tons of feedback from fans on the sound quality (too) … and that helps bring fans on their couch closer to the game, and that same experience is what’s going to be brought forward on NBA as well.”

What about the games?

This year includes a pair of exclusive Raptors games (Nov. 20 against Detroit and Jan. 7 against Minnesota), eight games involving two-time reigning MVP, Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and his Oklahoma City Thunder, along with select games from the NBA Cup tournament and then the Eastern Conference finals. If everything goes right for the new-look Raptors, that could mean quite a lot of exposure on the streaming service come the spring.

Both Nash and Griffin talked up the Raptors’ chances this season in their interviews.

“I think the Raptors are going to be good this year. If they’re healthy and Kawhi (Leonard) can play the majority of the games, they’re going to be tough,” Nash said. “They can play at both ends and they kind of built a foundation that Kawhi can fit into and really help. I think Scottie (Barnes) will benefit greatly from Kawhi, taking some of the burden off him. I think they have a sneaky good team here and can have a heck of a season.”

@WolstatSun

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