Game 1 of the Finals posts horrific TV ratings

3ddman23 · Post #61 » by **3ddman23** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 2:49 am

This type of stuff is media driven. Everyone says the series is gonna suck so the general public think it's gonna suck before the games are even played.

They ride the small market train and people stick with it. When you have people like chuck & Shaq saying they aren't gonna watch the series people listen to that and follow suit.

Johnny Bball · Post #62 » by **Johnny Bball** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 2:59 am

Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals was really low for no real good reason too so it might not be what you think.

Michael Bradley · Post #63 » by **Michael Bradley** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 3:04 am

levon wrote:
Anticon wrote:NBA and ESPN promoted Bronny more than either of these teams. So you reap what you sow.

Honestly this isn't true. They've been promoting the **** out of this on ESPN daytime shows this whole week. They had like a 4 hours Finals special day of too. I think you guys keep saying the same old tired stuff to farm and-1s instead of just admitting that market size matters for viewership.

Yeah this isn't due to lack of promotion. When the NFL season is over, ESPN talks about nothing except the NBA. Everyone who is within ear shot of ESPN on a TV screen knew about the Finals. It's just a bad matchup that casuals aren't going to want to watch, and I think both the NBA and ESPN know it (possibly why they have half assed the production).

The NBA spent years building around stars. They trained fans to root for the back of the jersey rather than the front of it. So in the absence of a big market (Knicks, Lakers), if you have a series that doesn't have a primetime popular mega star in it, then it's going to do poorly. Some of that is the NBA's own fault. Even last year's ratings were pretty bad considering the markets involved.

Lunartic · Post #64 » by **Lunartic** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 3:05 am

Ratings are down since the 90s, the 00s and the 2010s.

Less people are viewing the NBA than before. Some people will do acrobatics and contort themselves in an attempt to obfuscate or "debunk" this simple fact. It doesn't matter, they're wrong.

The NBA is less appealing than before and declining viewership is the obvious outcome.

ForeverTFC · Post #65 » by **ForeverTFC** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 3:22 am

Tim_Hardawayy wrote:This will be a very unpopular take for many posters here, but I think the NBA shot itself in the foot badly getting as political as it did during the covid years, and it might never recover from that.

It's more popular than you're letting on given how much it's in our daily discourse. But it's also a very bad take.

The NBA media rights are worth more today than they have ever been. The record new deal was signed last year and starts next year. Did the NBA lose some eyeballs? Maybe. Did it hurt them? Clearly no.

OnlyTheTruth · Post #66 » by **OnlyTheTruth** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 3:26 am

Celtics/Lakers run this game. They always had.

kodo · Post #67 » by **kodo** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 3:52 am

durden_tyler wrote:
MrGoat wrote:TV ratings aren't as important as they used to be. That just means boomers in the US have tuned out. Streaming and international markets mean a lot more now, too

This. Someone get us those streaming numbers.

Streaming has been accounted for in ratings for many years. Nielsen started doing this in 2011, 14 years ago.

It's really not an Indiana/OKC problem, younger people just don't engage in the live broadcasts nearly as much as older people. If they're interested they watch highlights, check scores, watch the social media around the event. A 2.5 hour sit through commercials for 48 min of action is a deal killer for 18-24 year olds. They have about 10m of attention span.

azcatz11 · Post #68 » by **azcatz11** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 3:59 am

Cactus Jack wrote:I'm really curious how the ratings would look in a market like Seattle.

You have two common groups here: Fans who either choose not to watch or don't have any interest whatsoever & fans who still actively hate-watch.

I personally have no interest in watching that team. So, I am actively boycotting this series. But I know that I'm not alone.

Yes, there still are fans of the NBA up this way. But some of us choose when & when not to watch.

Does anyone in Seattle remain a thunder fan? I assume the answer is no?

NotaHypeJob · Post #69 » by **NotaHypeJob** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 4:17 am

azcatz11 wrote:
Cactus Jack wrote:I'm really curious how the ratings would look in a market like Seattle.

You have two common groups here: Fans who either choose not to watch or don't have any interest whatsoever & fans who still actively hate-watch.

I personally have no interest in watching that team. So, I am actively boycotting this series. But I know that I'm not alone.

Yes, there still are fans of the NBA up this way. But some of us choose when & when not to watch.

Does anyone in Seattle remain a thunder fan? I assume the answer is no?

Hell no

Post #70 » by **G R E Y** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 4:20 am

Perhaps after Game 1's incredible finish, Game 2 will get more viewership.

Raps in 4 · Post #71 » by **Raps in 4** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 4:20 am

How many celebrities were in the crowd? Why would I watch a sporting event without all the top celebrities in attendance? At least in the last series I could see what Timothee Chalamet and his girfriend were up to in the crowd. That was so cool.

Also, where the **** is Oklahoma City? I've never even heard of the place. How many movies and shows are filmed there? What are the beaches like? What about the nightlife? Why would I watch a sporting event that isn't taking place in a hip city?

NotaHypeJob · Post #72 » by **NotaHypeJob** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 4:27 am

Raps in 4 wrote:How many celebrities were in the crowd? Why would I watch a sporting event without all the top celebrities in attendance? At least in the last series I could see what Timothee Chalamet and his girfriend were up to in the crowd. That was so cool.

Also, where the **** is Oklahoma City? I've never even heard of the place. How many movies and shows are filmed there? What are the beaches like? What about the nightlife? Why would I watch a sporting event that isn't taking place in a hip city?

I would rather watch dune part two than this finals tbh.
I'll check out game 2 tho, might be good

DavidSterned · Post #73 » by **DavidSterned** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 4:53 am

azcatz11 wrote:
Cactus Jack wrote:I'm really curious how the ratings would look in a market like Seattle.

You have two common groups here: Fans who either choose not to watch or don't have any interest whatsoever & fans who still actively hate-watch.

I personally have no interest in watching that team. So, I am actively boycotting this series. But I know that I'm not alone.

Yes, there still are fans of the NBA up this way. But some of us choose when & when not to watch.

Does anyone in Seattle remain a thunder fan? I assume the answer is no?

I've talked to a couple but they're rightfully treated like lepers.

FarBeyondDriven · Post #74 » by **FarBeyondDriven** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 5:24 am

good. Hopefully things get bad enough for Silver to be fired and a hard salary cap can be instituted. These players and owners make way too much money for the product they're putting out

Post #75 » by **Cactus Jack** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 5:30 am

azcatz11 wrote:
Cactus Jack wrote:I'm really curious how the ratings would look in a market like Seattle.

You have two common groups here: Fans who either choose not to watch or don't have any interest whatsoever & fans who still actively hate-watch.

I personally have no interest in watching that team. So, I am actively boycotting this series. But I know that I'm not alone.

Yes, there still are fans of the NBA up this way. But some of us choose when & when not to watch.

Does anyone in Seattle remain a thunder fan? I assume the answer is no?

I don't know anyone from the area that is a fan of that team. The large majority despise OKC.

There are still a good amount of folks who refuse to watch anything NBA related. They're still pissed over the move. Fans are waiting for an expansion team. But some are completely apathetic when you bring it up.

I was actually listening to local sports radio earlier today & the topic came up. They we're celebrating over the fact that they lost.

sammo89 · Post #76 » by **sammo89** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 5:41 am

They should post the cumulative playoff numbers from the first round to the finals. Something tells me it evens out when you count all the rounds together

LuDux1 · Post #77 » by **LuDux1** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 5:42 am

NBA finals will never be exciting until NBA owners hire capable professionals, like Dimitrios Giannakopoulos and Evan Fournier

dantas · Post #78 » by **dantas** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 6:03 am

I think it was a combination of a few things

1.OKC started out as the sixth biggest favorites for the NBA Finals since 1968. So there was an idea in the casual public that the series wouldn't be competitive. 2. None of the stars (SGA, Haliburton) are among the NBA's most popular players. 3. Smaller market teams

The first item can be improved as the series progresses. It could become a competitive series. But the other two can't be changed. So these finals won't be great ratings. These things happen.

Black Jack · Post #79 » by **Black Jack** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 6:14 am

NBA has terrible marketing

Also I think they need less commercials and timeouts. its horrific watching a full games worth of commercials.

Can I pay like a trillion dollars to not have to watch commercials and just see stadium footage during timeouts?

xxSnEaKyPxx · Post #80 » by **xxSnEaKyPxx** » Sat Jun 7, 2025 6:49 am

NotaHypeJob wrote:
azcatz11 wrote:
Cactus Jack wrote:I'm really curious how the ratings would look in a market like Seattle.

You have two common groups here: Fans who either choose not to watch or don't have any interest whatsoever & fans who still actively hate-watch.

I personally have no interest in watching that team. So, I am actively boycotting this series. But I know that I'm not alone.

Yes, there still are fans of the NBA up this way. But some of us choose when & when not to watch.

Does anyone in Seattle remain a thunder fan? I assume the answer is no?

Hell no

Why you lying bro?

I have a third cousin, who gets deli salami from this guy, whose sister’s ex husband, was in the army with a guy who had a kid, who moved from OKC to Seattle 5 years ago, and is a massive Thunder fan.

People will say anything in the internet these days…