ESPN and the National Basketball League have extended their broadcast partnership for a further three seasons as part of an expanded television rights package.

The new deal with the NBL sees an expansion of television and digital rights and, for the first time, extensive live game exclusivity.

Source: ESPN

ANALYSIS: ESPN added that this deal will feature all 140 NBL regular season games to be broadcasted live, with the vast majority of matches exclusive to ESPN. This is a big win for the NBL as the NBA Draft has seen more and more prospects come out of the NBL in recent years, giving more light to the Australian Basketball League. This year's NBA Draft features top NBL prospect Josh Giddey, who is projected to go in the lottery.

Here are some more details on the broadcasting deal from ESPN (via ESPN):

ESPN will air all but two games each round exclusively, and also have all key matches throughout the NBL Finals series exclusively.

Head of ESPN Australia/NZ, Kylie Watson-Wheeler said the deal represents the network's desire to share in the growth of the competition and solidify a long-term partnership.

"The National Basketball League has become a feature of ESPN programming and we are thrilled to extend the partnership with an expanded rights package for a further three seasons," Watson-Wheeler said.