WNBA fans have called out Peacock for persistent streaming issues, with NBA fans also suffering technical difficulties during the playoffs.
The WNBA tipped off on May 8, with Caitlin Clark, Paige Bueckers, and Angel Reese all returning to action. Meanwhile, the NBA Playoffs are ongoing, but fans have experienced audio issues and technical glitches while trying to watch the start of the Conference Finals.
Peacock, a streaming platform owned by NBC, airs games from both the WNBA and the NBA following a historic 11-year media rights deal. However, the blockbuster deal has led to issues for fans, who are growing increasingly frustrated.
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On Monday, Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals series between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs featured several technical glitches. From the audio cutting out and being out of sync to visual errors, it was far from a premium viewing experience.
As a streaming platform, there is always the risk of technical hiccups due to the nature of streaming over an internet connection. However, most fans have complained about broadcast issues, rather than external factors.
The issues have been ongoing through the start of the 2026 WNBA season, with some fans venting on X. “This is really terrible. Issues for both games on @peacock,” one fan wrote.
The start of the 2026 WNBA season has been impacted by some technical issues, fans say -Credit:Getty Images
“Freezing on all the adds; glitching during the game,” another added. “@peacock can’t even watch NBA or WNBA game because it’s freezing so bad,” a third wrote.
Over on Reddit, a WNBA thread has also attracted attention, with fans agreeing over broadcast issues. “Anyone else having issues with streaming through Peacock this season? I’m talking about freezing every few minutes, not even buffering just remaining frozen until we press back and click to load into the game again,” one user wrote.
Several users agreed, with one commenting, “Yes, it’s absolutely awful.” Another wrote, “Yes. Today and yesterday’s Fever Storm game. Like a minute behind.”
Peacock streams the majority of WNBA games -Credit:Getty Images
“Yup, every ad break mine gets extremely glitchy and blacks out and then leads to the game being delayed and glitched as well. Hoping they fix it soon because it happened during the aces vs dream game too,” one user said.
One fan has even stopped watching Peacock altogether, instead opting for the linear NBC channel. “I watch on NBCSN. Peacock is horrible,” they wrote.
The WNBA’s landmark 11-year media rights deal, which began this season, allows Peacock to stream regular-season matchups. This also includes exclusive Monday night games.
NBC/Peacock shares the broadcast rights to one WNBA Semifinal, with ESPN/ABC sharing the other. All games of the WNBA Finals will be broadcast on NBC or USA Network and simultaneously streamed on Peacock.