While TV audiences were down (-18%) since the start of the season, the Christmas audiences will give serious arguments to Adam Silver and those who assure that the public is not fleeing.
Because the five matches scheduled for December 25 were well followed on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, Disney+ and ESPN+, with an average of 5.25 million viewers, an increase of 84% compared to last season.
This is a record over the last five years, including a peak of 7.76 million viewers on average for the duel between Stephen Curry and LeBron James! There were even 8.32 million viewers in front of their small screen during the “money time” of the match, to see Austin Reaves’ decisive layup.
The Spurs – Knicks match kicks off the marathon perfectly
Enough to make this match the most watched regular season meeting in five years, with an increase of 499% compared to the meeting between the Heat and the Sixers, broadcast at the same time last year.
As usual with press releases on TV audiences, we have to look at the subtleties to temper the announcements, since the fact that all the matches were broadcast on ABC, a national channel, logically boosted the audiences, despite the presence of two NFL meetings in front. Nevertheless, the NBA can logically congratulate itself on the ratings, with close matches which attracted American families in front of their small screen.
The first game of the Christmas marathon between the Spurs and the Knicks was followed by 4.91 million viewers, a record for a first game on December 25 for 13 years, and an increase of 98% compared to the meeting between New York and Milwaukee broadcast at the same time last season…
The NBA is also pleased with its impact on social networks, with 500 million videos viewed on different platforms, a record for Christmas. And these very good Christmas audiences considerably moderate the fall in TV audiences compared to last year, with this single day reducing this drop from -18% to -4%!
