The return of “NBA on NBC” this season brought back some nostalgic vibes for many basketball fans. Now, NBC is fully playing into that nostalgia.

The network announced that for its broadcasted game between the Philadelphia 76ers and San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday, March 3, it will have a “Throwback Tuesday” telecast that aims to recreate the “NBA on NBC” broadcasts of the 1990s.

From the broadcasters to the graphics, Tuesday’s NBC matchup will look and sound as if its being played in the 1995-96 season.

Here’s what to know about NBC’s “Throwback Tuesday” broadcast for 76ers vs. Spurs.

MORE: How Jonathan Kuminga has proven Hawks right in trade from Warriors

What is NBC’s NBA ‘Throwback Tuesday’?

NBC previously announced that for its 76ers vs. Spurs broadcast at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, March 3, it would be bringing a retro feel to the broadcast, labeling it with a “Throwback Tuesday” nickname.

Per SBJ, NBC is aiming to recreate the feel of a broadcast from the 1995-96 season, which is the last era of the NBA that it held broadcasting rights. Throughout the 2000s, up until the 2025-26 season, NBC wasn’t a broadcast partner of the NBA.

The “Throwback Tuesday” broadcast isn’t just aiming to bring back 90s-like graphics and score bugs — it’s also going to have “grainy flashbacks” and arguably the biggest voice of the NBA in the 1990s, Bob Costas.

Costas, who has been a contributor to the “NBA on NBC” coverage in 2025-26, will be on play-by-play for the game, a switch-up from NBC’s traditional play-by-play announcers, Mike Tirico and Noah Eagle.

Other former “NBA on NBC” analysts and reporters will be working alongside Costas as the network aims to create a full 1990s feel to its 76ers vs. Spurs broadcast.

MORE: When is Jayson Tatum making his return from injury?

NBC’s NBA ‘Throwback Tuesday’ broadcast team

Here’s a look at the broadcasters calling NBC’s “Throwback Tuesday” matchup.

Bob Costas

On play-by-play for the throwback matchup will be Bob Costas, the legendary sportscaster who has called everything from the Olympics and World Series to the NBA Finals.

Costas was the voice of the “NBA on NBC” in the 1990s, hosting “NBA Showtime” and being on play-by-play. Now 73 years old, Costas is currently working in a limited contributor role to NBC’s NBA coverage in 2025-26.

In a comment to SBJ, Costas said that the retro broadcast will be going all-in on the 1990s feel.

“We’re not just going to give a taste of the history, it’s going to be entirely about that,” Costas said in a statement, per SBJ. “And I think the broadcast will be conversational more so than standard play-by-play. If the game is close in the second half, we won’t abandon the game, but there’s going to be a lot of throwback stuff. That’s what it’s been labeled. It’s Throwback Tuesday.”

Costas also said that NBC will be including clips of its best 1990s broadcast moments.

“The early returns are all positive; some people are calling it new-stalgia,” Costas said, per SBJ. “So in this case, we’re not apologizing for it. There’ll be clips of great moments. There’ll be maybe some funny stuff that happened in the studio or during the course of a game. And we also want to acknowledge people, not just the broadcasters, but some of the producers and directors who contributed so much to it. I want to acknowledge Dick Ebersol.

“I mean, the NBA on NBC was shaped by Dick Ebersol and David Stern. You want to acknowledge people like Bill Walton and [Steve] ‘Snapper’ Jones who are gone. Dick Enberg and Greg Gumbel occasionally did NBA games. Tom Hammond, Matt Guokas.”

Mike Fratello

Mike Fratello will be one of two analysts for the game alongside Costas. Nicknamed as “The Czar,” the former head coach of the Atlanta Hawks (1983-90), Cleveland Cavaliers (1993-99) and Memphis Grizzlies (2004-06) was also a game and studio analyst for NBC from 1990-93 and 2001-02.

Fratello was coaching the Cavaliers during the 1995-96 season, which is the year NBC is aiming for with its “Throwback Tuesday” broadcast, but he was a staple analyst of the network’s coverage alongside Marv Albert for many years.

Nowadays, Fratello is a part-time analyst for FanDuel Sports Network Ohio for the Cavaliers and a part-time color commentator for FanDuel Sports Network SoCal for the Los Angeles Clippers.

Doug Collins

The other analyst in the booth for Tuesday’s game will be Doug Collins, who was an analyst for NBC from 1998 to 2001.

A member of the 76ers from 1973-81, Collins went on to be the head coach of the Chicago Bulls (1986-89), Detroit Pistons (1995-98), Washington Wizards (2001-03) and 76ers (2010-13). He called games for CBS in the 1980s, also contributing as a broadcaster to NBC, TNT, TBS and ESPN.

Jim Gray

The sideline reporter for the “Throwback Tuesday” game will be Jim Gray, who was a courtside reporter for the “NBA on NBC” from 1994-2002.

Gray, now 66, is an Emmy Award-winning journalist, reporter, producer, and executive producer of sports documentaries and features, the author of “Talking to GOATs, The Moments You Remember and the Stories You Never Heard”, and the host of the “Let’s Go!” radio show and podcast on SiriusXM with Tom Brady and Larry Fitzgerald.

NBC’s NBA ‘Throwback Tuesday’ studio crew

The “Throwback Tuesday” telecast will begin at 7 p.m. ET, with an hour-long “NBA Showtime” program before the game.

Hannah Storm

The studio host for the “Throwback Tuesday” broadcast will be Hannah Storm, who was a courtside reporter and studio host for NBC’s NBA coverage from 1993-2000. Storm also hosted for the Olympics, WNBA, NFL, figure skating and MLB while with NBC.

Storm, an award-winning journalist, producer and director, has been with ESPN since 2008 and serves as an anchor for SportsCenter.

Isiah Thomas 

Basketball fans should be well-familiar with another member of the studio crew, Isiah Thomas, and not just for his role as a former game and studio analyst for NBC from 1998-2000.

Thomas, a Hall of Famer for his legendary career as a point guard of the Detroit Pistons, was also the head coach of the Indiana Pacers from 2000-03 and the New York Knicks from 2006-08. He is currently an analyst on NBATV and Fox Sports.

P.J. Carlesimo

The final member of the “Throwback Tuesday” studio crew will be P.J. Carlesimo, who was a studio analyst for NBC’s NBA coverage from 2001-02.

The former coach of the Portland Trail Blazers (1994-97), Golden State Warriors (1997-99) and Oklahoma City Thunder/Seattle SuperSonics (2007-08) has also been a broadcaster for TNT, ESPN, Westwood One and more.

What is ‘Roundball Rock?

As the NBA has made a return to NBC’s airwaves in the 2025-26 season, it has brought back various aspects of its coverage from the 1990s — including the “Roundball Rock” theme, which is the lead-in song by John Tesh that become synonymous with the “NBA on NBC” in the 1990s.

NBC has brought back “Roundball Rock” to the 2025-26 season as it returned as a broadcast partner. 

MORE: Everything to know about the history behind “Roundball Rock”

Share this post

Subscribe to our newsletter

Keep up with the latest blog posts by staying updated. No spamming: we promise.
By clicking Sign Up you’re confirming that you agree with our Terms and Conditions.

Related posts