NBA Ratings Down 23 Percent On TNT, Down 20 Percent On ESPN, Down 13 Percent On RSNs

[RealGM Wiretap]

Both TNT and ESPN have shown double-digit drops so far to begin the 19-20 NBA season.

TNT's coverage is down 23 percent while ESPN has dropped by 20 percent.

The NBA's RSN numbers are down 13 percent. While the Orlando Magic (+125 percent) and Atlanta Hawks (+43 percent) have seen gains, the Washington Wizards are down 57 percent and are the NBA team with the biggest drop. The Golden State Warriors are down 51 percent as they are without Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson after losing Kevin Durant to free agency.

Via John Ourand/Sports Business Journal

[Jabroni Lames]

ESPN and TNT were so excited to make Los Angeles the center of the NBA universe. Dumb idea.

You've made your bed... now go sleep in it.

[Dennis 37]

Maybe marketing star players nation wide isn't as good a strategy as cultivating and expanding loyal fanbases for each team. Did viewership of the Lakers not pick up the loss of Warriors viewership? Or is it fans are tired of players forcing themselves to the L.A. market and don't want to watch entitled teams?

[dubbmotta]

Maybe marketing star players nation wide isn't as good a strategy as cultivating and expanding loyal fanbases for each team. Did viewership of the Lakers not pick up the loss of Warriors viewership? Or is it fans are tired of players forcing themselves to the L.A. market and don't want to watch entitled teams.

Has been on the decline since Bron went West..I'm not staying up until 10:30 EST to watch the Lakers, all of the best players beside Greek Freek play on the west...that doesn't help.

[ball_dont_lie23]

NBA is trash this year. We need Zion back and the league should force James Dolan to sell the Knicks SMH.

[dougthonus]

Not enough good matchups in the early time frames would be my guess. I actually find the NBA way more interesting this year than Golden State's march to a title the last three years (even though they failed due solely to injury last year). Though it would be interesting to see if their late matchups also had declining ratings too.

The NBA is more open than in the past but the East is even less interesting than last year.

[dougthonus]

Has been on the decline since Bron went West..I'm not staying up until 10:30 EST to watch the Lakers, all of the best players beside Greek Freek play on the west...that doesn't help.

Drop has been since last year though, Bron was already west and the Lakers weren't interesting last year. You'd think Bron should boost ratings this year with a good Lakers team relative to last year (though maybe at this point the Lakers hadn't completely fizzled yet last year to see the ratings drop).

Kawhi going west hurts as it basically pulled one of the legit teams from east to west, and there was already so few legit teams on the east, though I'm not sure how much that moves ratings.

I'd have to imagine drops this large are due largely to lack of interest overall which surprises me a bit because I think the league is more interesting this year.

[Dubious Kitty]

That’s because all the televised games so far have been for trash teams

[FreeBoosie]

Maybe marketing star players nation wide isn't as good a strategy as cultivating and expanding loyal fanbases for each team. Did viewership of the Lakers not pick up the loss of Warriors viewership? Or is it fans are tired of players forcing themselves to the L.A. market and don't want to watch entitled teams.

Has been on the decline since Bron went West..I'm not staying up until 10:30 EST to watch the Lakers, all of the best players beside Greek Freek play on the west...that doesn't help.

You’re absolutely right. I’ve been a Lakers fan since I was little but since I live in ny so as much as I always wanted to watch the Lakers games, I really couldn’t because of how late the games started and ended. Now all of the good players are playing on west coast times and East is trash so this is bound to happen. I really liked the idea that was tossed around last year about the games starting earlier to increase viewership even if it means the arena isn’t completely filled when the games start.

[23artest23]

Is streaming included in the metrics? I'm guessing not but if it were, the viewership losses are probably not as dramatic. I don't think I've watched a single game this season that I didn't stream via the TNT/ESPN/Fox apps.

[Cowbulls]

All the stars feel they need to play on the west coast and all the good lotto picks go to small market **** box teams. Basketball is just a meh sport. It's a game for 18-28 year old people. 5 years ago you I would of never believed you if you said I'd only watch 1 Bulls game in the next 4 years. From the age of 19-25 I don't think I missed a Bulls game. Hopefully, for the NBA, the next batch of 18 year old kids is ready for their turn.

[Kingsway_fan]

Stop showing golden state and other scrub teams like Knicks, etc... and stop pumping LA TEAMS CONSTANTLY...

[DoItALL9]

"Let em play" a little more. The East coast definitely appreciates hard-nosed rivalries.

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[gobears81]

I'm personally tired of all the trade demands and "load management". It's weird to spend hundreds of dollars on tickets to support players that are looking to leave as soon as their contract is up, if not before. Every year, at least half of the roster is completely overhauled, so team chemistry isn't what it used to be.
My favorite team was the Bulls for almost all of my life, but they are soft and LaVine needs to go. Haven't watched more than a couple minutes of a Bulls game in forever. The Brooklyn Nets were a team that I could get behind last year, but with Irving and Durant on the squad, they lost their identity.

[GusFring]

Maybe fans aren't interested in 150 point games and no defense. How about the nba hold chicago and nyc accountable as having those teams relevant are going to massively boost ratings.

[dzumaal]

Maybe popularity has peaked? It cant always go up. People are creating more and more content on youtube and such. Its tv in general who loses.

[Liam_Gallagher]

That's because the Warriors, Pelicans, Blazers, Bucks, and Mavericks have played a majority of their games on national TV.

If people wanted to watch the Warriors, they'd just watch the G League.

[donemilio21]

People are increasingly watching sports online. I haven't watched anything on cable since 2010.

Also the best national TV matchups are between West teams and they tend to start on the late slate for east coast. over 75% of US population lives in eastern or central timezones.

[madmaxmedia]

Even fans are now load-managing during the regular season...

[TPA]

Even fans are now load-managing during the regular season...

Nice.