Technologies

NBA Finals: How to Watch, Stream Nuggets vs. Heat Game 5 on ABC Tonight From Anywhere

The Denver Nuggets are one win away from a title. Can the Miami Heat extend the series? Game 5 tips off soon, and you don’t need cable to watch.

After winning Games 3 and 4 in Miami to take a commanding 3-1 series lead over the Miami Heat, the Denver Nuggets can win the franchise’s first NBA title on their home court tonight. The Heat have already won seven road games during the 2023 NBA Playoffs and will need an eighth tonight in Denver to force a Game 6 back in Miami. Denver’s dynamic duo of Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray have looked nearly unstoppable for long stretches during the series, but you should never count out the Heat’s Jimmy Butler when you’re talking about playoff basketball.

Game 5 is set to tip off at 8:30 p.m. ET (5:30 p.m. PT) on ABC.

Whether you live in the US or are looking to follow the basketball action from around the world, we’ll outline the best live TV streaming services to watch the 2023 NBA Finals live, no matter where you are.

gettyimages-1495994811 — Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets take on Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat at home on Monday night for Game 5 of the NBA Finals on ABC.

Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

Nuggets vs. Heat Game 5: When and where?

Game 5 will be played at the Ball Arena in Denver. Tip-off is set for tonight at 8:30 p.m. ET or 5:30 p.m. PT in the US — that’s 1:30 a.m. BST in the UK and 10:30 a.m. AEST in Australia on Tuesday, June 13.

What is the schedule for the rest of the NBA Finals?

The schedule for the rest of the NBA Finals is as follows. All games will air in the US on ABC.

• Monday, June 12: Heat at Nuggets, 8:30 p.m. ET (Game 5, Nuggets lead 3-1)
• Thursday, June 15: Nuggets at Heat, 8:30 p.m. ET (Game 6, if necessary)
• Sunday, June 18: Heat at Nuggets, 8 p.m. ET (Game 7, if necessary)

How to watch the NBA Finals 2023 online from anywhere using a VPN

If you find yourself unable to view the game locally, you may need a different way to watch the game — that’s where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it’s also a great idea if you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.

With a VPN, you’re able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. Most VPNs, like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.

Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.

Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals taking place right now.

Sarah Tew/CNET

ExpressVPN

Best VPN for streaming

ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. It’s normally $13 per month, and you can sign up for ExpressVPN and save 49% plus get three months of access for free — the equivalent of $6.67 per month — if you get an annual subscription.

Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Livestream the Nuggets vs. Heat Game 5 in the US

All games for this year’s NBA Finals will be shown live nationally in the US on ABC and ESPN3. Most of the major streaming TV services offer ABC, but it can be a bit complicated.

Sling TV Orange: $40

Includes ESPN3

Sling TV’s Orange plan doesn’t include ABC, but it does include ESPN3, which will also work for streaming the NBA Finals. Sling also offers a Blue plan that has ABC in select markets, but the Orange plan should do the trick and also includes the regular ESPN channel.

Hulu Plus Live TV: $70

Carries ABC

Hulu Plus Live TV costs $70 a month and includes ABC. Click the «View all channels in your area» link at the bottom of its welcome page to see which local networks are available where you live.

YouTube TV: $73

Carries ABC

YouTube TV costs $73 a month and offers all the main channels that broadcast NBA basketball, including ABC. Plug in your ZIP code on its welcome page to see which local networks are available in your area.

Fubo: $75

Carries ABC

FuboTV costs $75 per month for its Pro option and includes ABC. Check out which local networks it offers here.

DirecTV Stream: $80

Carries ABC

DirecTV Stream is expensive. It’s the priciest of the five major live TV streaming services. Its cheapest, $65-a-month Entertainment package includes ABC as well as ESPN and TNT. You can use its channel lookup tool to see which local channels and RSNs are available in your area.

It is worth noting that DirecTV has an additional $15 «advanced receiver service» fee that automatically applies and is extra from the sticker price, which makes the Entertainment package $80 per month.

Each live TV streaming service offers a free trial, allows you to cancel anytime and requires a solid internet connection. Looking for more information? Check out our live TV streaming services guide.

Livestream Nuggets vs. Heat Game 5 in the UK

For basketball fans in the UK, every 2023 NBA Finals game will be shown live on Sky Sports. This game will be broadcast on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Arena, with tip-off set for 1:30 a.m. BST on Tuesday morning.

Now

Watch the NBA Finals in the UK from £12

Sky subsidiary Now (formerly Now TV) offers streaming access to Sky Sports channels with a Now Sports membership. You can get a day of access for £12, or sign up to a monthly plan from £25 per month right now.

Livestream Nuggets vs. Heat Game 5 in Canada

Live coverage of NBA postseason games is split between TSN, Sportsnet, RDS and NBA TV in Canada. The fifth game of the Finals is set to be broadcast on Sportsnet, which means it can be watched via its streaming service Sportsnet Now. Existing TSN or Sportsnet cable subscribers can meanwhile watch at no extra charge using the details of their TV provider.

Sportsnet Now

Watch (most of) the NBA Finals in Canada for CA$15

Sportsnet will broadcast 5 and 7 (if necessary) of the NBA Finals. To stream without a cable provider you will need to sign up for Sportsnet Now, its streaming service, which starts at CA$15 per month for its «standard» option.

TSN Plus

Watch NBA for CA$20 a month

TSN Plus won’t show Game 5 but will show Game 6 if the series goes that long. The service is priced at CA$20 a month or CA$200 per year.

Livestream Nuggets vs. Heat Game 5 in Australia

This year’s NBA Finals can be watched Down Under on ESPN via Foxtel. If you’re not a Fox subscriber, your best option is to sign up for streaming service Kayo Sports.

Kayo Sports

Watch the NBA Finals 2023 for AU$25 a month

A Kayo Sports subscription starts at AU$25 a month and lets you stream on one screen, while its Premium tier costs AU$35 a month for simultaneous viewing on up to three devices.

The service gives you access to a wide range of sports including F1, NRL, NFL, F1, NHL and MLB, and there are no lock-in contracts.

Better still, if you’re a new customer, you can take advantage of a one-week Kayo Sports free trial.

Quick tips for streaming the NBA Finals using a VPN

With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — your experience and success when streaming NBA Finals games may vary.
If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the «search for city or country» option.
If you’re having trouble getting the game after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help, since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.
And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.

Technologies

Pope Francis’ Funeral: How to Stream Live or Watch the Replay

Here’s how to stream the pope’s funeral very early Saturday, and what you can expect to see during the service.

After a week of global mourning for Pope Francis, who died on Monday at age 88, the pope’s funeral will be celebrated on Saturday . Francis’ funeral will be held Saturday at 10 a.m. local time at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City (which is very, very early if you’re tuning in from the US or Canada), and he will be laid to rest at the Papal Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome.

The Vatican will be livestreaming the papal funeral and procession, though not the burial, on its YouTube channel as it happens. The funeral will also be televised live on CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox, as well as on streaming services like Disney Plus, Hulu, Peacock and Paramount Plus. Due to the time difference, it seems likely that many interested North American viewers will catch it when it’s replayed later on Saturday. Numerous networks will rebroadcast the service later that day.

If you choose to stay up, or get up early, here’s when the live broadcast of the pope’s funeral will air in your time zone in the continental US on April 26:

ET: 4 a.m.
CT: 3 a.m.
MT: 2 a.m.
PT: 1 a.m.

The papacy of Pope Francis was notable for the progressive reforms he brought to the Roman Catholic Church. He appointed more than half of the current College of Cardinals and attempted to foster more positive attitudes toward members of the LGBT community and migrants worldwide.

What to expect from the funeral

The funeral will follow many rituals, though not all traditional protocols will be followed. Most popes are buried in St. Peter’s Basilica or its grottoes, but the AP reports Francis chose the St. Mary Major Basilica to reflect his veneration of an icon of the Virgin Mary that is located there, the Salus Populi Romani (Salvation of the People of Rome).

His funeral will be less elaborate than those of other popes per his own wishes. Francis simplified papal funeral rites last year, permitting his burial outside the Vatican, and emphasizing his role as a bishop rather than as pope (the pope is also the Bishop of Rome).

Previous popes were buried in three coffins: one of cypress, one of lead and one of oak. Francis requested to be buried in a single wooden, zinc-lined coffin and not to be placed in an elevated bier as other popes were.

The coffin will be taken from St Peter’s Basilica and placed on a dais in St Peter’s Square, where Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re will lead the service. After the service, the coffin will return to St Peter’s Basilica before it is carried across the River Tiber and to the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major for burial. The ceremony is estimated to end around 2 p.m. local time, or four hours after it begins.

Pope Francis’ funeral Mass will be the first of nine Masses held daily at St. Peter’s until May 4. This is an ancient tradition of the Catholic Church that observes nine days of consecutive mourning. According to Vatican News, a different group of mourners will participate each day, though the Eucharistic celebrations are open to everyone.

Who will attend Pope Francis’ funeral?

Hundreds of people, including world leaders and royals, are expected to attend Pope Francis’ funeral.

US president Donald Trump confirmed on his Truth Social Platform that he and first lady Melania Trump will be at the funeral. This will be Trump’s first foreign trip in his second term. He is expected to have a seat in the third row, though the Vatican has yet to release an official seating chart. It is tradition for the first row of seats to go to Catholic royalty, and the second row to non-Catholic royals.

Prince William, who is attending on behalf of King Charles, will sit in the second row, which is reserved for non-Catholic royals. Former president Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden, devout Catholics, will also attend the funeral.

Conclave: What happens next to choose the new pope

After Pope Francis’ funeral, the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church will vote on his successor in an assembly of cardinals known as a conclave.

There are many matters for the cardinals to settle before the conclave begins, but once it does, it can take days or even weeks to conclude. Two-thirds of the cardinals’ votes are required to elect the next pope. The conclave occurs behind closed doors and the vote tally is never made public.

Read more: Where to Watch Conclave, the Vatican Thriller About Electing a New Pope

Look for the white smoke

The ballots are burned after each round, and chemicals are added to the flames to produce black smoke if there’s no majority. When a new pope has been selected, the chemicals will be added to the flames so they produce white smoke. Crowds gather in St. Peter’s Square to watch for the results.

If you’re fascinated by the process, you can watch a dramatized version of the events in 2024 film Conclave.

In the movie, Ralph Fiennes stars as Cardinal Thomas Lawrence, who spearheads the election of the next pope while investigating rumors about potential candidates. The film is based on the 2016 novel by Robert Harris and is completely fictional — though it does represent some of the events of how actual papal conclaves take place. In March, the film won the Academy Award for best adapted screenplay.

You can stream Conclave on Amazon Prime Video, or rent it for $6 on Apple TV, Fandango at Home, YouTube or Google Play Movies.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for April 26, #685

Hints and answers for Connections for April 26, #685.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections puzzle features a lot of short words, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. That purple category requires a lot of thinking — probably most people will solve it only by solving the other three and having four words left over. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Rainbow.

Green group hint: San Fernando ____.

Blue group hint: Think Robert.

Purple group hint: Mixed-up hue words.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Tint.

Green group: Valley.

Blue group: Bobs.

Purple group: Color anagrams.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is tint. The four answers are color, hue, shade and tone.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is valley. The four answers are dale, dell, glen and hollow.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is Bobs. The four answers are Dole, Hope, Marley and Ross.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is color anagrams. The four answers are Dre (red), Gary (gray), genre (green) and lube (blue).

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for April 26, #215

Hints and answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, No. 215, for Saturday, April 26.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Connections: Sports Edition is tough today. The purple category theme threw me because of one phrase I didn’t know. And let’s hope you’re familiar with college coach surnames. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Try to achieve.

Green group hint: Move through it.

Blue group hint: Sideline bosses.

Purple group hint: Like a carton.