[W. Knight]

Staying with Bally, the Arizona Family group of stations (KTVK/KPHO Phoenix and KPHE statewide) announced a deal with both Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury to bring free local matches. The two teams previously were affiliated with Bally Sports Arizona instead.

But seems like Diamond Sports won't go down without a fight.

And the deal is a no-go, at least for now:

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez, however, ruled that the company could not yet move on from its existing contract with Diamond Sports Group, a bankrupt subsidiary of Sinclair Broadcast Group (SBGI.O) that broadcasts games through its Bally Sports TV channels.

U.S. bankruptcy law protects debtors from having their contracts modified or terminated without their consent, and Lopez ruled that the Suns' new TV deal was void because it interfered with the Diamond Sports' contractual right to negotiate contract extension.

Lopez did not award Diamond Sports any monetary damages on Wednesday, but said that he would consider a request for damages at a later hearing.

The Suns' attorneys argued that its TV deal with Diamond expired with the end of the 2022-2023 regular season, and that the new deal would not interfere with Diamond's rights under its existing contract.

Lopez was not persuaded, saying that the Suns' "media blitz" touted the new contract as a done deal despite "one line in the press release" about the Diamond Sports bankruptcy.

From www.reuters.com