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The National Basketball Association achieved a rapid rise and fall in television ratings from the 1997-98 season, when ratings for the NBA Finals achieved a record high, to the 2002-03 season, when ratings for the same event hit an all-time record low. Blame for this rise and fall has been pinned on the destructive NBA lockout which occurred right after the 1998 season. The lockout wiped out thirty-two games of the 1998-99 season and caused fan apathy. Other blame has been put on the retirement of Chicago Bulls star Michael Jordan, also on backlash against the "hip-hop" culture of the league, and as well as heavy competition from prime time programming such as American Idol, the CSI shows, and Dancing With The Stars.

Despite the problems in the early-to-mid-2000s (decade), the NBA's regular season ratings average was (and is) on par with Major League Baseball's, and ratings for the finals continue to outdraw competing events that occur during the same month, such as golf's U.S. Open and the Stanley Cup Finals.

Since 2007, NBA ratings have steadily risen, thanks to the resurgence of nationally recognized NBA teams, their star power, and their annual presence in the NBA Finals. Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals had the best rating for a basketball game in the contemporary NBA on ABC era, and the 2011 Finals held steady in the ratings department as well. Both series drew over a 10 rating, beating the World Series in consecutive years for the first time ever.

However, despite the declining TV ratings in the early 2000s (decade) and moderate ratings after, the NBA's television audience is often younger, and thus very attractive to advertisers.

CBS (1973 – 90)

During CBS' tenure as NBA over-the-air carrier, the NBA experienced its first resurgence, under the leadership of Los Angeles Lakers guard Magic Johnson and rival Boston Celtics forward Larry Bird. After the then-lowest Nielsen ratings in NBA history in 1981, Bird and Magic led the NBA to unprecedented popularity, and much higher ratings. Before the arrival of the two stars, and the recreation of the previously-fiery Celtics–Lakers rivalry, NBA ratings on CBS were so low that the network aired NBA Finals games in 1980 and 1981 on tape delay. From 1978–81, no NBA Finals achieved even a 10 average rating. Once the Celtics–Lakers rivalry heated up, ratings went up dramatically. CBS increased its commitment to the NBA, while America warmed up to the league nationally for the first time. In 1987, the NBA Finals hit a then-record rating of 15.9. In 1988, CBS achieved its only 20+ rating for an individual NBA game when the network got a 21.2 rating for Game 7 of the 1988 NBA Finals between the Lakers and Detroit Pistons. The Pistons would be in the next two NBA Finals, including a sweep the next year, and the lowest ratings CBS had seen in six years the year after that, with a 12.3 in 1990. The 1990 NBA Finals was CBS' last, after nearly two decades televising the NBA. While the network broadcast every Bird-Magic Finals, it never broadcast any Final involving Michael Jordan, who, starting the year after CBS ended involvement with the league, would dominate the NBA in a way that neither Bird or Magic had. In 1990, the final year of the CBS deal, the regular season rating stood at a 5.2. (Each rating point represents 931,000 households.)

NBC (1991–2002)

Record highs

The 1990 NBA Finals, which registered a 12.3 rating, was the last Finals CBS aired. Under NBC for the first time in 1991, The Finals ratings improved, as Jordan's Bulls finally overcame Isiah Thomas and the "Bad Boys" Pistons, who eliminated them the two prior postseasons. Jordan and the Bulls played Magic Johnson and the Lakers, a team making what was to be their last appearance in the NBA Finals for the next nine years. The hype over Magic Johnson vs Michael Jordan was robust, and the ratings were, indeed, the highest since 1987, a year in which the Celtics and Lakers played for the final time. The next year, Jordan's Bulls again made the Finals to play against the Portland Trail Blazers, a small-market team with few stars. The ratings fell to 14.2, the second-lowest rating for the Finals since 1986. In 1993, however, the six-game series between the Bulls and the bombastic Charles Barkley's Phoenix Suns averaged a massive 17.9 rating, a mark that eclipsed the previous record of 15.9. This 17.9 rating also beat the 17.3 rating for that year's MLB World Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Toronto Blue Jays; it was the first time that any NBA Finals had accomplished this feat.

The 1993 Finals were Jordan's last before his first retirement. The Houston Rockets would take the next two titles consecutively, beating the New York Knicks in 7 games in 1994 and the Orlando Magic in 4 games in 1995 (The Orlando Magic even defeated the Jordan-led Chicago Bulls in 6 games in the playoffs, though Jordan had returned mid-season and, many contend, was not at full form). The ratings for the 1994 and 1995 Finals decreased but remained above-average. The 1995 Finals even came within .3 ratings points of the 1992 Finals and featured young superstar Shaquille O'Neal.

After these two seasons, the Jordan-led Bulls regained their standing, and ratings greatly increased as a result, considering that Jordan's return game last season, on March 19, 1995 between the Bulls and the Indiana Pacers, scored a 10.9 rating for NBC to become the highest rated regular-season NBA game of all time. In Game 1 of the 1996 NBA Finals between the Bulls and Seattle SuperSonics, the Bulls' 107-90 win at home in the United Center earned a 16.8 rating and a 31 share on NBC. This game was viewed in a then record 16,111,200 homes. On June 16, 1996, Game 6 of the NBA Finals (where the Bulls clinched their fourth NBA Championship in six years) drew an 18.8 rating and a 35 share. The six games of the 1996 NBA Finals averaged a 16.7 rating which, at the time, ranked second all-time behind the 1993 NBA Finals between the Bulls and Suns that averaged a 17.9 rating.

In 1997, ratings for the Bulls-Utah Jazz series were slightly better at 16.8. This rating was higher than the 16.7 rating generated by the seven-game 1997 World Series between the Florida Marlins and the Cleveland Indians, marking the second time the NBA Finals bested the MLB World Series in television ratings. The 1998 Finals would repeat that accomplishment and more by blowing away the 1993 record, averaging an 18.7 rating— a record that is unlikely to be matched by the NBA Finals for the foreseeable future— and passing the 14.1 rating generated by the 1998 World Series between the New York Yankees and the San Diego Padres. The deciding Game 6 (and Michael Jordan's final game with the Bulls) registered an NBA record 22.3 rating with a 38 share. The game was viewed by 72 million people, breaking the record set earlier that postseason by Game 7 of the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals between the Pacers and Bulls (that same game set a record for highest-rated non-Finals NBA game with a 19.1/33). The 1998 Finals would be the last time the NBA Finals produced a higher rating than that year's World Series until 2008 (Since then, the NBA Finals has outdone the World Series in 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013.)

Post-Jordan decline

The retirement of Michael Jordan set in motion the decline in NBA ratings which continues today. Ratings for the 1999 NBA Finals (which in fairness, came after a lockout shortened season) were down significantly from the previous year, from an 18.7 to an 11.3. Primetime regular season games, which had become fairly routine (and highly rated) during the Jordan years, set record lows for NBC once Jordan retired. With the rise of the Los Angeles Lakers in the early part of the 2000s (decade), ratings improved, but never to the level of the 1980s or 1990s. The highest NBA Finals ratings on NBC after Jordan left was the 2001 Finals, which featured the dominant and then-defending champion Lakers with Shaq and Kobe Bryant versus the polarizing Allen Iverson and the underdog Philadelphia 76ers. The ratings for that series were a 12.1, still down 35 percent from 1998. NBC's last Finals, in 2002, came after a resurgence in playoff ratings (including a 14.2 rating for Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals). However, the Finals itself registered the lowest ratings the event had seen since 1981, topping out at a 10.2 average.

ABC (also ESPN on ABC) (2002-)

Regular season

Record lows

ABC's regular season NBA television ratings have routinely finished between a 2.0 and a 2.5 ratings score. While these ratings compare favorably to the NHL's Stanley Cup Finals, it is extremely low by NBA standards. Thirty-nine (or just over a third of) NBA games on ABC have registered a 2.1 or lower rating. Twice in March 2004, ABC registered a 1.1 rating with a 3 share, the lowest rating on a broadcast network in NBA history. ABC's March 28, 2004 telecast featuring the Dallas Mavericks and the team with one of the worst records in the NBA, the Orlando Magic, was outdrawn by the NCAA Division II Basketball Championship game on CBS. ABC has routinely had games register ratings of below 2.0, and has set record lows for NBA network TV ratings in each of its first two seasons. Without the aid of the Shaquille O'Neal-Kobe Bryant matchup in the 2004–05 season, ABC would have set another record low that year. Even with that aid, the network was only able to register a 2.4 average rating (which was even with the record low from the previous season). ABC set a record low for average playoff ratings during the 2005 NBA Playoffs, even as rival TNT (also experiencing lower ratings) set a record for the highest ratings the NBA had ever gotten on cable, thanks to Game 7 of the 2005 Eastern Conference Finals.

ABC tied its record low ratings mark from the 2004-05 season in 2005-06, scoring a 2.2 average overall. On March 19, 2006, a rained-out NASCAR telecast got a higher television rating than ABC's presentation of the Lakers-Cleveland Cavaliers game (featuring Kobe Bryant versus Lebron James). While the game itself had ratings 30 percent higher than the previous year, the situation was an embarrassment for both the NBA and the PGA Tour (which was also outdrawn by the rain delay). On April 30, 2006, another rained-out race outrated an NBA game (Miami Heat-Bulls, First Round, Game 4). One factor in this is the fact that NASCAR usually outrates regular season NBA (as well as MLB and NHL) games by over 200 percent.

ABC's NBA ratings began to bounce back during the 2006 NBA Playoffs, led by their highest Sunday afternoon rating since taking over the NBA for Game 7 between the Cavaliers-Pistons (6.1/14). Overall, ABC's 2006 NBA Playoff coverage averaged a 3.8, up from 2005, but still down from 2004.

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The NBA Finals

ABC's ratings for the NBA Playoffs and Finals have been extremely low compared to NBC's. In its last year televising the NBA, 2002, NBC experienced a growth in playoff ratings, leading to the highest rated Western Conference Finals in NBA history, and a 14.2 rating for Game 7 of that series, which featured the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings. ABC's highest rating overall was a 15.6 with which came in Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals—lower than the 14.2 registered by the Lakers-Kings series. While other sports were also languishing with low ratings (i.e., baseball, which has seen three out of the last four World Series score near-record-low ratings), the NBA joined the ratings-challenged NHL as the only two out of the four major sports to have their championship ratings dip below a 10.0. (Baseball joined the family when the 2008 and 2010 World Series dipped below the 10 mark.)

2003 NBA Finals

During its twelve-year run on NBC, the NBA never received a Championship Series TV rating lower than a 10.0. In 2003, thanks in part to a playoff schedule in which the Finals began nearly a week after the Conference Finals ended, ratings for the series between the San Antonio Spurs and New Jersey Nets plunged to a record-low 6.5. Game 6 of the series, the deciding game, ranked number 6 in number of households watched, and games were routinely beaten by reruns of series on CBS. Many attributed the drop to a relatively superstar-free Finals, which involved two small markets. Others pinned the massive ratings drop on bad play (the score at halftime of Game 3 was 33-30), and former ABC Sports Vice President Jim Spence was quoted as laying part of the blame on ABC itself:

There were too many announcers, too many camera cuts and an overuse of technology. It was hard to settle in as a viewer.

In addition, unlike previous NBA Finals, games routinely began at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time, nearly forty-five minutes earlier than normal. In what was viewed as an insult to some fans, ABC had movie reviewer Joel Siegel as a guest for halftime of Game 6. Siegel and Mike Tirico spent most of halftime talking about the upcoming summer movies, including featuring a look at music from Hulk. The segment ended with Siegel and Tirico, both wearing toy Incredible Hulk hands, pounding fists. On the segment, the Sports Business Daily quoted Joe Hawk of the Review-Journal as saying:

At first, we were peeved ABC would foist upon us 10 minutes of shameless whoring for the summer movie industry at halftime Sunday. But considering what the Spurs and Nets had given us for the first 5½ games of the series, even a trailer for that hokey 'Hulk' flick was more entertaining.

No game in the series reached a 7.6 Nielsen rating, and none of the games reached a double-digit overnight rating. In addition to Game 2 of the 2005 NBA Finals, Games 1, 2, 4 and 5 of the 2003 series rank as the only championship games out of the NBA, MLB and NFL to have below a 7.0 rating. The poor ratings were a surprise to many in the media, and, while the overall quality of play in the series was criticized the most, ABC's telecasts also received a large amount of criticism. The New York Post's Andrew Marchand took notice of the fact that ABC's graphics had not been updated or changed in any way for the Finals, while Jim Sarni of The Miami Herald noted that the announcing team of Brad Nessler, Bill Walton and Tom Tolbert was "as bad as the basketball."

Also, 2003 was the only year that ABC broadcast both the NBA Finals and the Stanley Cup Finals that involved teams from one city in the same year. During Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Continental Airlines Arena on June 8, 2003, Nessler, Walton, and Tolbert indicated that the New Jersey Devils would be playing the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in Game 7 of the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals at Continental Airlines Arena the following night and that ABC would be broadcasting it. The following night, Gary Thorne, Bill Clement, and John Davidson all indicated that ABC broadcast crews were in a situation having to broadcast two games from Continental Airlines Arena in as many nights: first Game 3 of the NBA Finals, then Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Bob Cole and Harry Neale also indicated the situation ABC was in during their broadcast of Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals on the CBC.

2004 NBA Finals

In 2004, ratings for the 2004 NBA Finals between the Lakers and Pistons went up significantly right from the start, helped largely by the presence of Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. As the series went on, and the heavily favored Lakers were toppled by the underdog Pistons, ratings gained momentum, eventually topping out at an 11.5 overall average, the best Finals rating since 2001. Some reasons for the improved ratings, in addition to the presence of the star-studded Lakers, include the fact that the NBA pushed the games' start times back to 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Also, games were shifted from the traditional Wednesday-Friday-Sunday rotation to a Tuesday-Thursday-Sunday rotation, eliminating games airing on low-rated Friday nights.

Commercial promotion was ramped up for the 2004 NBA Finals as well. Whereas the 2003 NBA Finals received very little fanfare on ABC or corporate partner ESPN, the 2004 Finals were promoted more on both networks. Even so, NBA-related promotions on ABC were still down significantly from promotions on NBC; NBA promos took up 3 minutes and 55 seconds of airtime on ABC during the week of May 23, 2004 according to the Sports Business Daily, comparable to 2 minutes and 45 seconds for the Indianapolis 500. Promotions for the Indianapolis 500 outnumbered promotions for the NBA Finals fourteen-to-nine from the hours of 9:00 pm to 11:00 pm.

2005 NBA Finals

While the 2004 Finals showed improvement for ABC, the 2005 NBA Finals sank back towards record-low levels. The series between the previous two champions, the Detroit Pistons and San Antonio Spurs, was widely panned by the media as a slow, boring, defensive-minded series without any captivating stars. On Tuesday, June 7, 2005, the night after Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Pistons and Miami Heat, ESPN's SportsCenter went as far as to air a segment between host Dan Patrick and analyst Ric Bucher going over the reasons why sports fans should tune into the series. Some fans felt as if this was a knock against the Spurs and Pistons, noting that ESPN usually did not have to give reasons why to watch a championship sporting event.

The series got off to a shaky start, with four consecutive blowouts, and ratings below double digits in every game. While Games 1, 3 and 4 had at least a 7.0 rating (on a Thursday, Tuesday and another Thursday respectively), Game 2 (on a Sunday night) fell to a 6.9. Games 5, 6 and 7 of the series stemmed the tide, with each game getting progressively higher ratings. All three games scored double-digit overnight ratings, and Game 7 achieved the only double-digit final rating of the series, an 11.9. The rating was only ABC's fifth double-digit final rating ever in covering the NBA; NBC had six double-digit ratings alone in 2002. The rating would also go down as one of the lowest ever ratings for a major sport championship Game 7 (joining several Stanley Cup Final game sevens). Overall, ratings for the series averaged an 8.2, the second-lowest average in league history. Many in the media and the viewing public complained that games in the 2005 Finals began too late, making it harder for those on the East Coast to view the end.

2006 NBA Finals

Though the 2006 NBA Finals featured stars (Shaquille O'Neal, Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki and even Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban), the series between the Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks, both of whom were in the Finals for the first time in their respective histories, was only slightly up from the 2005 Finals. While single-digit ratings were predicted, most notably by Houston Chronicle television sports writer David Barron, that the series finished with only an 8.5 ratings average served as a statement that the league's ratings would likely not return to even 2001 levels.

Even though the ratings were lower than expected, they were still higher than 2005 and much higher than 2003. In addition, ratings for the event dramatically bested the U.S. Open (which, partially due to star Tiger Woods missing the cut, got its lowest ever Saturday rating) and the Stanley Cup Finals. The 2006 Finals would stand as only the second Final on ABC to have every game get at least a 7.8 rating (higher than every game of the 2003 Finals and all but three games of the 2005 Finals). Still, two of the games were below an 8.0, and two games matched the number. Prior to ABC's involvement in the NBA, 8.0 was the lowest the Finals had gone since the tape-delay days in the early 1980s, when the O.J. Simpson car chase upstaged Game 5 of the 1994 NBA Finals.

Game 6 of the series was only ABC's sixth NBA game to ever achieve a double-digit rating (10.1). While the series ranked as the third-lowest of the prime time era (since 1982), ABC press releases managed to spin the ratings in a positive light:

Additionally, the six-game average for the 2006 Finals was up from last year by 12% in household ratings (8.5 vs 7.6), by 3% in household impressions (6.2 million vs 6.0 million), by 13% in total viewers (13 million vs 11.5 million) and by 13% in adults 18-49 (5.3 vs 4.7).

The ratings from the 2006 Finals signaled that the Spurs' two championships (in 2003 and 2005, which netted ABC a 6.5 and 8.2 rating respectively) were not isolated incidents of diminished interest, but instead a trend for the NBA on television. As NBA commissioner David Stern is planning to, by the end of 2006, renew and extend his TV deal with ABC, ESPN and TNT (a deal that relegated most playoff games to cable and may be the most responsible for the downturn in television ratings), it is unlikely that the league will return to double digit averages for its championship series for many years.

2007 NBA Finals

While the 2007 NBA Finals featured LeBron James making his first appearance, according to ESPN, the series was a television bust in the United States. San Antonio's four-game sweep of Cleveland finished with a record-low 6.2 television rating and 11 share on ABC, Nielsen Media Research said on June 15, 2007.

That was down 27 percent from the 8.5/15 for Miami's six-game victory over Dallas from the previous year and 5 percent under the previous low, a 6.5/12 for San Antonio's six-game win over New Jersey in 2003. The NBA Finals averaged 9.3 million viewers this year.

San Antonio's series-winning 83-82 victory on Thursday night got a 6.5/12, down 17 percent from the 7.8/14 for Game 4 in 2006.

The ratings of the 2007 NBA Finals surpassed that of the 2003 NBA Finals as the lowest-rated series in NBA Finals history. It is suggested that these poor ratings have been attributed to numerous things, such as the fact that Cleveland and San Antonio are generally smaller markets in comparison to Los Angeles, Dallas, Miami and Detroit, cities that recently had its NBA teams in the finals. Also game two occurred on the same night as The Sopranos series finale.

Additionally, there has been criticism that both teams didn't score many points in the series which can also be attributed to the low ratings. The series was to bill LeBron James at the highest point in his career. He did account for a vast majority of the Cavaliers' performance in the playoffs, but was unable to deliver in the end.

Additionally, ESPN on ABC's coverage of the Finals placed far more emphasis on the legacy of the game. In other words, more attention was directed towards league stars Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird, three players responsible for the leagues success in the 1980s and 1990s. In addition, ABC's coverage placed more emphasis on celebrity and cross-network promotion. Eva Longoria, star of ABC's Desperate Housewives and then-fiancee of Spurs' point guard Tony Parker was featured at times during the games.

2008 NBA Finals

The 2008 NBA Finals featured the Lakers and Celtics renewing the historic Celtics–Lakers rivalry with their first meeting since 1987. With this, the ratings had great improvement from the previous year's Finals. The six-game series garnered a 9.3 rating and an average of 14.9 million viewers, a 50% increase from 2007 and the highest Finals numbers since 2004. The series-clinching Game 6 finished with a 10.7 rating and drew 16.9 million viewers.

2009 NBA Finals

The 2009 NBA Finals featured the Lakers for the second straight time facing off against the Magic. These Finals had a slight drop from the previous year's Finals. The five-game series finished with an 8.4 rating, a 9.7% decrease from 2008, with the series averaging 14.3 million viewers. The series-clinching Game 5 had an 8.0 rating and garnered 14.2 million viewers.

2010 NBA Finals

The 2010 NBA Finals featured a rematch of 2008 with a renewal of the classic rivalry between the Lakers and Celtics and proved to be a smash hit in the ratings. With the historic rivalry between the two most successful teams in the league being the marquee matchup once again and the Finals going seven games for the first time since 2005, the series achieved a 10.6 rating and an average of 18.1 million viewers, the highest numbers since 2004. This was a 26% increase from 2009 and a 14% increase from 2008, the last time the Lakers and Celtics met. The deciding Game 7 garnered an 15.6 rating and a tally of 28.2 million viewers, making it the most-watched NBA game since Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals, which had a 22.3 rating and drew 72 million viewers. In addition, the seventh game bested the previous Game 7 in 2005 by 31%. Game 7 is as of now the most-watched NBA game in ABC's current eight-season run with the league.

2011 NBA Finals

The 2011 NBA Finals, a rematch of 2006, featured, arguably, pro sports' most scrutinized team—the 2011 Miami Heat against perennial playoff underachievers, and underdogs, in the Dallas Mavericks. The six-game series, which had better ratings for Games 1, 3, and 5 (as compared to 2010), would drop slightly from that Final, with a 10.2 rating. The highest-ranked game, Game 6, registered a 13.3 rating and is now the third-most watched game in modern NBA on ABC history. The series is the second consecutive Finals to reach double-digits, and the third in the ABC era to do so.

2012 NBA Finals

The 2012 NBA Finals featured the 2012 Miami Heat returning to avenge their 2011 Finals disappointment and facing a newcomer, the Oklahoma City Thunder, led by three-time scoring champion Kevin Durant. The five-game series once again saw growth in the ratings, with Games 1, 2, 4, and 5 all having better numbers than the previous year. It was the highest rated five-game series since the 2004 Finals. The series was the third consecutive Finals to reach double-digits, and the fourth in the ABC era to do so.

Cable ratings

In the 2005-06 season, ESPN and TNT's ratings were up slightly in the regular season and up significantly in the playoffs. TNT's ratings for second round playoff games were up 22 percent from the previous year, while ESPN posted double digit increases in both the first and second rounds of the playoffs. ESPN's Conference Final ratings were up 20 percent from the previous year, from a 4.0 to a 4.8. TNT's Conference Final ratings fell to their lowest level since 2003.

Turner Sports

The NBA on TNT (and previously TBS) has been on the air for over two decades. In the last three years, NBA coverage on TNT (with help from various dramatic telecasts, including in 2005, The Closer and Into the West) has helped the network to season wins on cable television. In 2004, the ratings for the NBA Playoffs helped TNT become the #1 ranked cable outlet for the sweeps month of May. Also in 2004, TNT set a record for most viewed NBA playoff game in cable history, with 6.5 million households for Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals between the Lakers and Minnesota Timberwolves. A year later, TNT broke that record, with 6.75 million households for Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Pistons and Heat. That Game 7, which scored a 6.2 national rating, was not only a record, "but it out delivered all of its broadcast television competition on the night among targeted adult demos, including adults 18-34, adults 18-49, men 18-34, men 18-49, and men 25-54. Game 7 on Turner also produced a higher U.S. household rating cumulatively than shows on all broadcast networks except for those on CBS.". However, ratings for that year's Conference Final were down 20.6 percent. Overall, TNT's ratings have been better than counterpart ESPN's since 2002 (the first year the networks began competing against each other). During the 2005 NBA Playoffs, TNT recorded its highest first round playoff ratings in its history of carrying the NBA; the number fell by 1 percent for the first round of the 2006 NBA Playoffs.

The May 4, 2006 telecast of Game 6 of the Phoenix Suns-Los Angeles Lakers first round series was seen in 3,713,000 homes, setting a record for a cable first round NBA playoff game. The previous record had been 3,606,000 for a 1995 game between the Bulls (who had just recently had Michael Jordan return from his first retirement) and the then-Charlotte Hornets.

TNT's May 22, 2006 Game 7 doubleheader produced high ratings. The first game of the doubleheader (Mavericks-Spurs) generated a 5.7 rating, while the second game (Los Angeles Clippers-Phoenix Suns) scored a 4.9.

The All-Star Game

TNT began airing the NBA All-Star Game in 2003. That year, the All-Star Game featured NBA legend Michael Jordan's last appearance in the event, and the ratings were exceptionally strong. The game was the second most viewed NBA All-Star Game since the NBA lockout in 1999, even though it was on cable and the previous All-Star Games had been on network television (NBC). The game averaged 10.83 million viewers and captured a 6.6 rating. The telecast, according to Time Warner, topped ABC and FOX in the time period. However, following this success, ratings for the event fell over the next three years. The 2005, 2006 and 2007 games each set record lows of 4.9 (2005), 4.3 (2006) and 4.2 (2007). Despite setting record lows, the All-Star Game is usually the highest rated and most viewed event on cable during the first quarter (January to March) of the cable television season.

ESPN

ESPN's NBA Friday and NBA Wednesday coverage has averaged ratings similar to (but slightly lower than) TNT's regular season coverage since the network began televising NBA games in 2002. On January 17, 2003, ESPN achieved the then-second highest regular season rating on cable in NBA history when it televised the first showdown between then-Los Angeles Lakers star Shaquille O'Neal and Houston Rockets then-rookie Yao Ming. The game set a record for most watched basketball game on ESPN, with a rating of 3.82. On Christmas Day 2004, ESPN's Pacers-Pistons game (a rematch of the brawl) got a 3.5 rating.

In 2004, ESPN set a record for most watched basketball game on the network, with Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Pistons and Pacers. The game scored a 5.0 rating and averaged 4.4 million households. In 2006, Game 5 of the Pistons-Heat Eastern Conference Final bested that rating, netting a 5.5 with 4.9 million viewers. The game was ESPN's highest rated 2nd quarter program in network history. Game 6 of the same series got a 5.4 rating and slightly fewer viewers. The 2006 Eastern Conference Finals between the Miami and Detroit was the highest rated Conference Finals ESPN has aired, finishing with a 4.8 average.

On April 22, 2006, ESPN aired Game 1 of the Bulls–Heat first round playoff series on "ESPN Full Circle" (a treatment previously given to a Duke-North Carolina college basketball game earlier that year). The 'traditional' game telecast aired on ESPN (called by Mike Tirico, Steve Jones and Bill Walton) while a telecast shown exclusively from the 'above-the-rim' camera aired on ESPN2, called by John Saunders, Greg Anthony, Tim Legler and Scottie Pippen from ESPN's Times Square studios. Additional forms of the game telecast aired on several ESPN platforms (including ESPN360 and ESPN Mobile). The Full Circle presentation resulted in a total 45 percent increase in viewership from the previous year. ESPN itself received a 26 percent increase from the previous year's presentation of an Indiana Pacers-Boston Celtics playoff game, and the game following (Los Angeles Clippers versus the Denver Nuggets) was up 17 percent over the previous year.

ESPN scored its most viewed first or second round NBA playoff game with their May 19, 2006 broadcast of the Spurs–Mavericks Game 6, until the Lakers and Rockets in 2009.

See also

• NBA on ABC
• NBA on NBC
• NBA on CBS
• NBA on TNT
• NBA on ESPN
  • NBA Wednesday
  • NBA Friday
• Nielsen ratings

References

1. THE MEDIA BUSINESS; NBC and N.B.A. Agree to $750 Million Pact
2. 'Monday Night Football' takes a hit'
3. After Dust Settles, ABC Saddled With Record-Low NBA Finals
4. Quality Of Play Displayed In NBA Finals Widely Panned
5. Nets-Spurs NBA Finals Down In Both Points Scored And Ratings
6. The Daily Monitors ABC's Promotional Push Around NBA Finals
7. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/barron/3927253.html
8. 2006 NBA FINALS ON ABC POWERS NETWORK TO RATINGS WINS ALL SIX NIGHTS
9. NBA's Stern Fast-Tracks TV Rights
10. http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playoffs2007/
11. http://yourentertainmentnow.com/2008/06/29/complete-ratings-for-the-2008-nba-finals/
12. http://www.nba.com/2009/news/06/16/finals.ratings.ap/index.html?rss=true
13. http://www.multichannel.com/article/453926-ABC_Nets_Its_Top_NBA_Telecast_Game_7_Scores_28_2_Million_Viewers.php
14. http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-06-18/nba-finals-on-abc-get-biggest-tv-audience-in-12-years-update3-.html
15. The Finals Conclude Season of Success for Nba in 2003-04; League Sets All-Time Attendance Record, Opens Reading & Learning Centers in LA and Detroit and Sees Increases in Finals TV Ratings and NBA.com traffic.
16. NBA East. Game 7 Breaks Record
17. TNT Dunks Cable Ratings with NBA All-Stars
18. Ratings for NBA All-Star Game in Las Vegas Fall to Record Low
19. ESPN FULL CIRCLE: CHICAGO/MIAMI POSTS 45% VIEWERSHIP INCREASE

External links

1. Sports Business Daily
2. Media Life Magazine
3. Zap2it
4. NBA Finals numbers game.
5. Sports Media Watch: 2000s ratings game

• National Basketball Association on television
• Market research
• ABC Sports
• CBS Sports
• ESPN
• NBC Sports
• Turner Sports