Wish you could be courtside at a Lakers game? Put your Vision Pro back on and fire up the NBA app

• Select Los Angeles Lakers games will stream in Apple’s Immersive on Vision Pro
• Games will be shot with Blackmagic URSA Cine Immersive cameras
• Streams begin by early 2026 via the NBA and Spectrum SportsNet apps

Apple’s already released a good bit of immersive content shot specifically for the Vision Pro. You can get up close with Bono, rock out with Metallica, or take a peek behind the curtain at Yankee Stadium – even if that hurts a bit to write today after last night’s game – or stand alongside a herd of rhinos.

We’ve seen a broad range of content, but I’ve been waiting for something live – specifically, live sports. Seeing that Apple TV+’s Friday Night Baseball is capturing games with the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max gave me some hope, and now we have a confirmed release. In what might be the start of something new, select Los Angeles Lakers games will be live-streamed in Apple Immersive for the Vision Pro this coming season.

It’s not every game, but for those that are streaming – exclusive to the $3,500 Spatial Computer – you’ll get access to views that put you right in the middle of the action. Special cameras that support the format will be set courtside and under each basket to give you perspectives that amp up the immersion. The Lakers' games will be shot using a special version of Blackmagic Design’s URSA Cine Immersive Live camera.

In my eyes, this feels like Apple delivering on a promise – or at least starting to – as even in my first demo with the Vision Pro, I was treated to awesome, up-close shots of a whole range of sports.

Much like Apple TV+ deploying the iPhone 17 Pro in unique places around Fenway Park, the idea of capturing an NBA game in this format is to deliver a broadcast that replicates the feel of being at the game. Or in some cases – with a view from the net or as a player on the bench – a perspective normally reserved for the athletes.

This won’t be for every Lakers game, though. Apple and the NBA will announce which ones will be viewable on Apple Immersive later this fall (before the end of November 2025), with the first expected by early 2026.

Assuming you have the Vision Pro – which is available in the US, UK, and Australia, among other countries – you’ll need the NBA app or the soon-to-be-released Charter Communications Spectrum SportsNet app. Both will require visionOS 26 or later, which Apple released on September 15, 2025.

You’ll likely need an active subscription to either service, but we’re still waiting on those details. For now, via either app, you’ll be able to stream the Lakers in Apple Immersive live or on demand for three days after each game ends in the United States. Some live events will be limited to the Lakers’ regional broadcast territory, so if you’re not in a specific state or city, you might encounter a delay.

If you’re outside the US, fear not – you can still get your head in the game with replays in the NBA app in the UK, Australia, France, Germany, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and the UAE.

While we don’t yet know the date of the first game, if you have a Vision Pro, this will likely be something to tune into. The NBA app already offers unique experiences for watching traditional broadcasts, with stats and play-by-play, as well as digital views of the court.

But if this immersion truly makes it feel like you’re there, with some incredible shots, it could be the closest we’ve gotten to that long-promised experience. And if it goes well with the NBA and the Lakers, it might encourage other teams, leagues, and entertainment partners to attempt similar feats for Apple’s Immersive formats.

And when the more affordable Vision Pro arrives, Apple will have more engaging, enjoyable content ready to serve new customers.

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