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Fans Call For Return Of John Tesh's Theme Song With NBA Coming Back To NBC In 2025

Roundball Rock seems to the preferred song for NBA basketball fans. Most fans on social media do not want NBC to reinvent the wheel. They want the old song brought back for an encore.

Scott Salomon

Jul 8, 2021; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; NBA on NBC basketball play by play reporters Mark Jackson (left), Jeff Van Gundy (center) and Mike Breen during the Phoenix Suns against the Milwaukee Bucks in game two of the 2021 NBA Finals at Phoenix Suns Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 8, 2021; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; NBA on NBC basketball play by play reporters Mark Jackson (left), Jeff Van Gundy (center) and Mike Breen during the Phoenix Suns against the Milwaukee Bucks in game two of the 2021 NBA Finals at Phoenix Suns Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA is coming back to NBC and its related networks in 2025.

The 11-year, $76 million accord was struck this week. One of the glaring questions remaining was whether the NBA on NBC theme song will be returning as well.

The answer is yes, the classic is coming back.

The song "Roundball Rock" was used as the opener for games starting in the 1990s.

John Tesh, who wrote the music, asked NBC to re-license the song for the Paris Olympics. His request was granted and will be played throughout the games. He has plans to re-record the song with an orchestra.

Tesh told the story about the song's evolution on his YouTube channel in a video entitled "The Untold Story Behind Roundball Rock - NBA''s iconic theme.

Tesh said he originally wanted to write a sports theme song. However, he did not have a piano or any recording equipment with him while he was traveling through Europe.

Tesh said he had to sing the music into his answering machine to remember to write the song. He said the song originally became the Chicago Bulls theme song.

A press release issued by NBC Sports and reported by Awful Announcing said Tesh's instrumental classic rendition will be brought back to broadcasts.

"The return of the iconic 'Roundball Rock' theme music", the release noted as one of the highlights of the 11-year agreement.

Fans embraced the song on social media. There were 31,100 views and 14,000 likes to the NBC Sports post of the song.

Scott Salomon is a contributor to Back In the Day Hoops On SI. He can be reached at sas@southfloridamedianetwork.com

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Scott Salomon
SCOTT SALOMON

Scott Salomon joined FanNation on Sports Illustrated in April 2024 covering breaking news and analysis for the Miami Dolphins channel. In June he joined Inside the Heat and Back in the Day NBA. Scott is based in South Florida and has been covering the local and national sports scene for 35 years. Scott has covered and has been credentialed for the Super Bowl, the NFL Combine, various Orange Bowls and college football championship games. Scott was also credentialed for the NBA All-Star game and covered the Miami Heat during their first six seasons for USA TODAY. Scott is a graduate of the University of Miami School of Communication and the St. Thomas University School of Law. Scott has two sons and his hobbies include watching sports on television and binge watching shows on various streaming services. Twitter: @ScottSalomonNFL