With NBA and NHL Playoffs in Full Swing, Never a Dull Moment for TNT Sports Production and Ops Teams From March Madness through the Stanley Cup, the broadcaster relies on consistency By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.
Tuesday, April 23, 2024 - 3:36 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
For TNT Sports, the spring season never lets up - and 2024 is no exception.
It all started in mid March when March Madness entered the picture to join TNT Sports' ongoing regular-season NBA and NHL productions. Then came the MLB on TBS package, the SheBelieves Cup featuring the USWNT, and the NBA Play-In Tournament. The TNT Sports production machine hit full tilt over the past weekend with the concurrent start of both the NHL Stanley Cup and NBA Playoffs. It's an insane workload but one that the production and operations teams are well-equipped to handle.
Inside TNT Sports' mobile unit for Game 2 of the Nuggets-Lakers Round 1 series in Denver
Our playoff planning for both NBA and NHL starts long before the ball is tipped or the puck is dropped, says Lee Estroff, senior director, strategic production planning, TNT Sports. When we go through the process of securing mobile units, technical enhancements, and technical crew, it is always with an eye toward the postseason. After many years of transitioning from the regular season to the full-throttle playoffs, we've learned the importance of repetition and consistency.
Like a NASCAR Pit Crew': Experienced, Battle-Tested Teams That consistency applies to mobile units, equipment levels, and technical crew - all of which are critical in developing experienced and battle-tested production teams who can quickly pivot into playoff mode, according to Estroff.
Like a NASCAR pit crew, he says, the TNT Sports staff, the vendors, and technical crew have specific functions in successfully executing the production strategy. The repetition of a six-month season with 60+ NBA and NHL regular-season games allows the entire team to fine-tune the processes needed to execute at the highest level when faced with quick turnarounds, set/shoot/strikes, late-night scenario planning, and other characteristics of the NBA and NHL Playoffs.
Full-Court Press: NBA Play-In Tournament and Playoffs TNT is offering more NBA Playoff games than any network.
This year, TNT is the exclusive home to more NBA Playoff games than any network, including First and Second Round action and the exclusive presentation of the Western Conference Finals. As part of the new TNT Sports on truTV programming lineup, truTV is also offering simulcasts of TNT's coverage and NBA BetCast alternative viewing experiences throughout the NBA Playoffs. All of TNT Sports' coverage of the 2024 NBA Playoffs will be available to stream on Max's B/R Sports Add-On. In addition, NBA TV - co-managed by TNT Sports and the NBA - will feature up to nine originally produced telecasts during the First Round.
NEP is once again providing TNT Sports' mobile units for the duration of the NBA Playoffs: besides its regular-season Supershooter 8 and Supershooter 7, Supershooter 9 and Supershooter 4. As was the case throughout the regular season, TNT Sports will deploy remote graphics and multiple EVS replay positions from its Techwood studios in Atlanta for the first and second rounds. Once the Western Conference Finals begin, however, all games and Inside the NBA remote studio shows will be full onsite productions, with all facilities and crew at the venue.
TNT's regular-season facility levels carried over into the Play-In Tournament and will continue through Round 1 and Round 2 with a robust 18 cameras: 10 hard, five handheld, and three robos. Other enhancements include above-the-rim robos, mid-court 6X slo-mo camera, coach mics, player mics, pregame layup-line player interviews, and the virtual shot clock via its partnership with Brand Brigade. Game 7s in any series will have upgraded facilities, such as additional super-slo-mos, robotics, and Steadicams.
In addition to Inside the NBA onsite, the Western Conference Finals coverage will include more high-frame-rate and shallow-depth-of-field cameras, as well as audio enhancements, drones, robotics, and a few other surprises, according to Estroff.
The TNT Sports operation team continues to perform at the highest level, he says. The passion, dedication, and commitment of this team is evident in the successful planning of complex (and ever-evolving) productions on a daily basis. In this current climate of budget tweaks and workflow changes, the tech-ops, remote-ops, and crewing teams have consistently operated at the highest level while embracing every challenge.
Power Play: NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs TNT Sports' networks and platforms will televise up to 49 games during the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs with expansive digital content and highlights from Bleacher Report, House of Highlights, and B/R Open Ice. All games feature a 30-minute NHL on TNT Face Off pregame show, as well as intermission and postgame shows from the studio. The coverage - live games, pre/postgame shows - will be available to stream live on Max's B/R Sports Add-On as well as via the TNT, TBS, and truTV apps and websites.
TNT Sports' regular-season mobile units, NEP ND6 and TS2, will serve as its primary facilities for Round 1 and 2. In addition, TNT will again collaborate and share mobile facilities in some markets with ESPN during the early rounds, deploying Game Creek 79, NEP Supershooter 6, and NEP Supershooter 24 mobile units.
New to TNT Sports this postseason will be World Feed MFP productions originating from selected Canadian venues. TNT Sports will work with Sportsnet to assist in producing these shows with supplemental facilities and crew.
For the NHL Conference Finals, the broadcaster will roll up NEP Super
North America Stories
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Bitmovin, a leading provider of video streaming infrastructure, and Akamai, the cybersecurity and cloud computing company that powers and protects business onli...
04/06/2026
American Underground (AU), the Startup Hub of the South and a community of mor...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
NVIDIA and Microsoft Reinvent Windows PCs for the Age of Personal AI
Brie Clayton June 3, 2026
0 Comments
RTX Spark - a 1-Petaflop Superchip, the Full...
04/06/2026
Inside the Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man Grade
Brie Clayton June 3, 2026
0 Comments
Simone Grattarola discusses shaping the look in DaVinci Resolve...
04/06/2026
Cine Gear Expo Announces 2026 Awards of Excellence Recipients
Brie Clayton June 3, 2026
0 Comments
Ed Lachman ASC, Caleb Deschanel ASC, and M. David M...
04/06/2026
St. Vincents Live with Orchestra Tour to Feature Berklee Alum Ruby Plume Berklee alumni St. Vincent and Ruby Plume will appear on the same bill across seven d...
04/06/2026
June's forecast with GeForce NOW: 100% chance of gaming.
GeForce NOW is lining up new adventures for the month, from big-name blockbusters to quirky indies...
03/06/2026
SES and Viva, Mexico's ultra low-cost airline, have launched multi-orbit satellite inflight connectivity on Viva's Airbus aircraft. A total of 60 A320s ...
03/06/2026
The College Football Playoff, ESPN, and TNT Sports have announced kick times and...
03/06/2026
RED Digital Cinema will exhibit at Cine Gear Expo 2026 (Booth 33, June 5-6, Universal Studios Lot), hosting three panels and hands-on product demonstrations.
P...
03/06/2026
Roku has announced the Soccer Zone, a dedicated hub for FIFA World Cup 2026 content available across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argent...
03/06/2026
Liverpool FC and Wasabi Technologies have announced a multi-year extension of their partnership, with Wasabi continuing as the club's official cloud storage...
03/06/2026
Grass Valley has announced that Australian News Channel (ANC), operator of Sky News Australia, has deployed Grass Valley AMPP as part of the relocation of its n...
03/06/2026
The Riedel Group has announced the appointment of Gudrun Scharler as CEO of Riedel Networks. She succeeds Michael Martens, who has led Riedel Networks since 201...
03/06/2026
Clear-Com has announced the deployment of its intercom solutions at Itaka Arena ...
03/06/2026
Scott Coker has announced six senior executive appointments for his new global MMA promotion, which launched earlier this year with $60 million in financing. Ad...
03/06/2026
Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language home of the FIFA World Cup 2026, has announced its digital and social media programming for the tournament, running Ju...
03/06/2026
The Bundesliga has announced the launch of Captain, an AI assistant built into t...
03/06/2026
Anthony James Partners (AJP) is serving as technology consultant for a moderniza...
03/06/2026
Audio-Technica has announced the recipients of its annual sales rep firm awards for the 2025-26 fiscal year. The awards were presented by Jim Schanz, Executive ...
03/06/2026
iodyne will exhibit at Cine Gear Expo 2026 alongside RED Digital Cinema and Adob...
03/06/2026
The broadcaster will deploy 39 cameras for game coverage, six cameras for studio...
03/06/2026
The 2026 FIFA World Cup is providing a great opportunity for not only Fox Sports...
03/06/2026
Sony Electronics is introducing the SRG-AS10, a 4K 60p compatible PTZ Auto Framing camera that uses Sony's proprietary AI to automatically recognize and tra...
03/06/2026
Game Creek Video's Flagship A, B, C, and D unit will wind up its first year ...
03/06/2026
According to Caretta Research, the sports-rights market may be hitting the brake...
03/06/2026
Retrieval still courtesy of Tribeca.
By Jessica Herndon
This year, the Tribeca...
03/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/06/2026
For more than three decades, Re-recording Mixer Andrew Wilson, AMPS, CAS, has helped bring the natural world to the screen with exceptional audio enjoyed by mil...
03/06/2026
Telestream, a global leader in media workflow technologies, will showcase its latest innovations for modern AV production environments at InfoComm 2026 (Booth N...
03/06/2026
DPA Microphones will present a comprehensive portfolio of integrated audio solutions designed to meet the evolving needs of today's professional AV environm...
03/06/2026
Lightware announces the GVN-HC-TX220AP, a new transmitter in the Gemini GVN 1G AV-over-IP family that introduces full-featured USB-C for professional 1Gb AV-ove...
03/06/2026
Evergent, the customer management and monetization leader for streaming and digital subscription businesses, and Minno, the global leader in faith-based content...
03/06/2026
Alfalite, Europe's only LED display manufacturer, has completed a new broadcast installation with the deployment of two UHD Finepix 1.5 MATIX AlfaCOB LED di...
03/06/2026
Broadcast Solutions, a leading systems integrator and provider of innovative solutions for the broadcast media industry, is completing a contract to build eight...
03/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
With NBA and NHL Playoffs in Full Swing, Never a Dull Moment for TNT Sports Production and Ops Teams From March Madness through the Stanley Cup, the broadcaster relies on consistency By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S. 
