Published on May 30th, 2018 | by Sebastian Szwarc

Your definitive Apple TV guide to the NBA Finals

For every basketball fan, the hottest time of the year just arrived – the NBA Finals between the Western and Eastern Conferences winners to determine the ultimate U.S. champion.

The contenders are (again) the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors. Both teams have struggled to enter the finals easily as both conference titles were decided in Game 7, the first time that has happened since 1979.

SCHEDULE

As in the playoffs, the finals are played in the best-of-seven format. The schedule is…

Game 1: Thu, May 31: Cavaliers at Warriors, 9 p.m. ET
Game 2: Sun, June 3: Cavaliers at Warriors, 8 p.m. ET
Game 3: Wed, June 6: Warriors at Cavaliers, 9 p.m. ET
Game 4: Fri, June 8: Warriors at Cavaliers, 9 p.m. ET

If necessary:
Game 5: Mon, June 11: Cavaliers at Warriors, 9 p.m. ET
Game 6: Thu, June 14: Warriors at Cavaliers, 9 p.m. ET
Game 7: Sun, June 17: Cavaliers at Warriors, 8 p.m. ET

The finals can be watched in these various regions of the world on Apple TV. Here are the details…

UNITED STATES

All games will be broadcasted by ABC television through local affiliates. Many of these local stations are available on streaming services like DirecTV Now, Fubo TV, Sling TV, Hulu with Live TV, YouTube TV, or PlayStation Vue. Check out the local network affiliates chart at Streambuzz.net to see what local channels are available on the various streaming services that may be broadcasting in your area.

All the games will also be available live through the Watch ESPN app on Apple TV, requiring a pay TV subscription or TV provider login.

CANADA

In Canada, games are broadcasted by TSN Network that can be streamed on Apple TV through the TSN GO app.

AUSTRALIA

Australian fans may watch the games via the ESPN Australia channel available on the Foxtel Now app.

UNITED KINGDOM

Those in Great Britain can view the finals through a subscription to BT Sport, but because there is not an Apple TV app for the service, will need to watch via an AirPlay connection to their Apple TV device and television.

INTERNATIONAL

For those who don’t want to rely on an antenna or cable/satellite operator, the NBA provides a paid subscription service available globally on iOS and tvOS through the NBA Game Pass. All final games will be broadcast live through the streaming service outside the U.S. and Canada. Broadcasts in the U.S. will only be available to watch three hours after the completion of each game. There is a seven-day free trial that might get you covered for all the finals.

Will LeBron James finally get the Rings and stop the winning train of the Warriors? We’ll soon find out.

Tags: Apple, apple tv, basketball, Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors, national basketball association, NBA

About the Author

Sebastian Szwarc Sebastian is a Mac journalist and podcast host based in Poznań, Poland. He is the founder and co-host of the podcast Pear 2 Pear, and currently the editor of MojMac.pl and Mój Mac Magazyn. A big movie fan, he talks about film music on Radio Poznań. He has previously worked for Apple-User.pl and the podcast Jabłecznik.