Ever since NBC strategically leaked its $2.5 billion-a-year bid for the NBA’s coveted “B” package, back in June, the sports media industry has waited deliberately to see how Warner Bros. Discovery would reciprocate. C.E.O. David Zaslav, of course, had previously and famously pooh-poohed the exorbitant cost of NBA rights, and even suggested that his conglomerate could survive without them. Meanwhile, the Journal’s report of the NBC bid tested this hypothesis, sending WBD’s stock further downward and unleashing a chain reaction of derivative events including, but not limited to, public mourning about the potential finale of the beloved Inside the NBA, Charles Barkley’s announced forthcoming retirement from broadcasting, Zaz’s courtside support of the Knicks’ playoff run, and—lo and behold—his suggestion that his lawyers would be reviewing their contract to deploy the company’s vaunted matching rights.

The NBA rights deal, which was negotiated interminably, will finally kick into gear tomorrow when the league’s board of governors approves Disney’s $2.6 billion “A” package, the NBC deal, and Amazon’s $1.8 billion “C” package. This ratification will start the clock on WBD’s five-day window to make a counteroffer via those matching rights. Which, of course, isn’t a straightforward affair since WBD can’t actually match NBC’s two primetime broadcast windows per week (Zaz and TNT Sports C.E.O. Luis Silberwasser never reached out to any executives from CBS or Fox, according to multiple sources, to explore a joint venture) or the global streaming reach of Amazon’s Prime product. (And, some would argue, the debt-strapped company shouldn’t be paying around $2 billion per year for anything.)