How the NBA's esports league reinvented itself as a media company

About this episode

My newsletter: https://simonowens.substack.com/ When the NBA teamed up with video game publisher Take-Two Interactive to launch an esports league in 2017, the idea was to replicate the traditional sports model within the world of competitive gaming. NBA teams would field their own esports franchises, recruiting elite gamers to compete in organized tournaments. But as the esports industry matured, it became clear that the biggest audiences weren't necessarily tuning in to watch professional gaming competitions. Instead, they were gravitating toward individual creators on platforms like Twitch and YouTube. Recognizing this shift, the NBA and Take-Two decided to rethink their joint venture, transforming it from a traditional esports league into a broader media company that produces creator-led competitions, original video series, and social content centered on basketball culture. To lead this transformation, they hired Andrew Perlmutter, a media executive who previously worked at The Atlantic and The Daily Beast. Since becoming CEO of NBA Take-Two Media in 2023, Perlmutter has overseen the reinvention of the NBA 2K League while developing a slate of original programming designed t