The NBA’s TV ratings so far this season have been far from all-star level. Viewership across ESPN, TNT and NBA TV is down 17% year-to-year overall, according to Nielsen figures. TNT’s coverag…
the picture isn’t much prettier. The Disney-owned network is down 19%, averaging 1.5 million viewers versus just under 1.9 million viewers at the same stage last year.
It has to be said that the list of big-name stars sat in civilian clothing instead of in uniform has been freakishly long. The most controversial absence has been that of Kawhi Leonard, the freshly-minted Los Angeles Clipper who almost singlehandedly led the Toronto Raptors to an unlikely championship victory last year. Leonard’s absence has drawn headlines because many attribute some of the games he has missed to “load management,” or rest.
Speaking of the team from the bay area, another contributing factor to the league’s ratings struggles has been the tanking Warriors. The Warriors currently find themselves at the very bottom of the Western Conference standings with a 4-19 record, the second worst in the NBA behind only the train wreck that is the New York Knicks.
Come the business end of the season the numbers are going to improve — they always do with the NBA. Eighty-two regular season games is a lot for anyone but the most ardent fan to get through. And of course viewership on cable is down pretty much across the board. The damage caused by cord-cutting is hitting cable hard and it likely won’t stop anytime soon.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
TV Ratings: 'Thursday Night Football' Sacks ABC's Holiday Movie'Same Time, Next Christmas' draws an audience on par with the most recent Hallmark Channel holiday films.
Read more »
TV Ratings Wednesday, December 4, 2019TV Ratings Wednesday, December 4, 2019
Read more »
TV Ratings: ‘Masked Singer,’ ‘The Moodys’ Lead Fox to Wednesday WinFox walked away with a win in the Wednesday night TV ratings, thanks to another solid performance from “The Masked Singer” and the debut of its new comedy miniseries “The Moodys.&…
Read more »
TV Ratings: 'The Moodys' Has Decent Start for FoxFox's holiday comedy TheMoodys premiered to decent ratings Wednesday, coming in ahead of the season averages for its time period's regular occupant, 'Almost Family'
Read more »
NBA roundup: Harden withstands elbow, helps Rockets top RaptorsJames Harden scored six of his 23 points in the fourth quarter after leaving the...
Read more »
NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal's $2.5 million Los Angeles home is for sale—take a look insideNBA Hall-of-Famer and businessman Shaquille O'Neal has listed his Bell Canyon, California home for $2.5 million. Shaq bought the place in February 2018 for $1.8 million.
Read more »