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Disney, ESPN and NBA to Present First Real-Time, Animated Game on Christmas Day
Disney, ESPN and the NBA are teaming up to present the first real-time animated NBA game using Sony's Beyond Sports technology, Sports Illustrated has learned. Dunk The Halls will air at noon ET on Christmas Day on ESPN2 as an alternate option for the San Antonio Spurs-New York Knicks tilt and feature iconic Disney characters in a virtual live recreation of the on-court action.
Per a release from the companies, every Spurs and Knicks player "will appear as a motion-enabled, animated player" for the Christmas Day clash. Disney characters expected to appear include Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Pluto, Goofy and Chip and Dale, as well as Santa Clause and his elves from Prep and Landing.
Drew Carter will provide play-by-play and Monica McNutt will work as the analyst. They'll be joined by special guest Daisy Duck, who will report from the sidelines. Mickey and his pals will also have a slam dunk contest game at halftime—among the many other bells and whistles to kick off the five Christmas Day games NBA games airing on ABC, ESPN, Disney+ and ESPN+.
Here's a preview:
In addition to everything else, this represents the first time an NBA game will stream live on Disney+.
Animated broadcasts are becoming more popular, with a Simpsons-themed one set to go with Monday Night Football on Dec. 9. The family appeal is obvious and doing one on Christmas Day is a pretty savvy move.
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Kyle Koster is an assistant managing editor at Sports Illustrated covering the intersection of sports and media. He was formerly the editor in chief of The Big Lead, where he worked from 2011 to '24. Koster also did turns at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he created the Sports Pros(e) blog, and at Woven Digital.