Watching your favorite shows and movies anywhere you can connect to the internet has been the driver behind US sports streaming trends skyrocketing over the last five years. Though this increase in streaming is due to services like Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max, and Hulu, the technology is changing the landscape for all content creators.

Any company with a vault of content is jumping into the streaming game. This includes the NBA’s live streaming offering NBA League Pass. The all-access subscription plan has been around for a while, but it’s no longer limited to cable providers. With League Pass, you can stream NBA games from anywhere you have an internet connection. As far as devices are concerned, NLP has you covered as it’s available on Apple and Android phones, laptops, Apple TV and YouTubeTV, Xboxes and PlayStations, tablets, Chromecast, and even on the Apple Watch. 

Why Does the NBA Blackout Certain Teams?

So you finally decide to splurge on NBA League Pass; paying in upwards of $149.99 for the full season so you can have unfettered access to every game on the schedule. That means when you can come home from work, you can peruse the buffet of NBA match ups and then choose the game that gets you the most excited, right?

The issue is that you can’t watch every game on NBA League Pass. You’ve changed out of your work clothes and prepared some snacks to watch the New York Knicks, Golden State Warriors, or Los Angeles Lakers. You scroll through the NBA League Pass channels.

The problem? Once you get to the game, it says it isn’t available in your area; that’s it’s blacked out. Here’s an example Blackout Notice you’ll see when the game isn’t available:

The reason why NBA League Pass restricts some games is because the NBA has separate TV agreements with national channels as well as with every city/region’s affiliate TV stations in which the NBA has a presence. As the NBA puts it: 

Blackout restrictions exist because local and national content providers have certain exclusive rights to televise live games and content. The audio of games that are blacked out will be available to listen live.

In total, those agreements are worth billions upon billions of dollars, so though NBA League Pass is a great revenue stream for the league, they don’t want to 1A) lose that money and 1B) step on the toes of the local affiliates. Clearly you’re reading this because you’ve realized this little restriction too late. Your excitement has turned into frustration as you  find that NBA League Pass blacks out local games. 

How does that make sense? That’s the reason you got NBA League Pass in the first place! 

How To Get Around the NBA League Pass Blackout

You don’t care about the why in the moment. What you care about is watching the Dallas Mavericks vs. the Miami Heat NOW. After accepting the fact that you won’t be able to catch the first quarter, you set out to find out how you can watch the rest of the game. So how do you access a game that’s being blacked out by NBA League Pass? We’ve put together five workarounds that you might not know about.

Check ESPN, TNT, or ABC

NBA matchups that are being shown on a national channel will not be available on League Pass. Same reason as with local affiliates — the NBA has agreements with ESPN, TNT, and ABC to have exclusive rights to televise specific games. That means you can only watch the Golden State Warriors take on the Memphis Grizzlies on Christmas Day on ABC. So to get around games that are blacked out, check the NBA’s National TV schedule to see if the game you’re interested in is being shown on any of those channels. If it is, head to TNT, TBS, ABC, or ESPN.

Get Local Cable

NBA League Pass only blacks out the NBA team in the city (region) you live in. So if you live in Barrie, Ontario, you won’t be able to watch the Toronto Raptors on League Pass, but you will be able to watch that game on CSN.

If you’re in Salt Lake City, the Jazz will be blacked out on NBA League Pass, but you’ll be able to see the game on Root Sports Utah.

So the easiest (and most legal) way to get around the NBA League Pass blackout is to subscribe to your local affiliate TV station that has the rights to televise NBA games in your area, which is usually a Fox Sports or CSN affiliate. Here’s a handy list of all the local affiliates that have agreements with the NBA.

Change Your Location Using a VPN 

So how does NBA League Pass know your location so to black out your local team’s games? The answer is your IP address. An IP address is basically a unique number that acts as your digital street address and is associated with your city, town or locale. The IP address is assigned to your device you’re using to stream NBA League Pass. You live in Bend, Oregon? No Portland Trail Blazers on League Pass for you.

The good news is you can change the location of your IP address with a VPN or Virtual Private Network. We won’t get into the nitty-gritty technical details of what goes into a VPN, but using a VPN allows you to fake or “spoof,” your IP address.

So even if you’re a Phoenix Suns fan living in Scottsdale, you can fake your IP to say you live in Pontiac, Michigan. And because your IP is telling NBA League Pass (Roku, YouTubeTV) you live near Detroit, you can now watch Phoenix Suns games.

Go to your Local Sports Bar

None of the above are solutions that work for you, and you are desperate to watch the Boston Celtics take on the Philadelphia 76er? One surefire way to catch the game is to get into your car and drive to your local sports bar, restaurant chain (Buffalo Wild Wings), or establishment. You are guaranteed that they’ll be showing the local team’s game, and the bigger sports bars and restaurants will have NBA League Pass.