How the NBA Finals Ratings Have Changed Over the Years

Since the first NBA Finals aired on ABC in 1953, the Championship Series has been one of the most-watched annual sporting events in the United States The Finals are currently averaging 20 million viewers per game, which is up 8% from last year and up 2% from 2016.

The ratings for the NBA Finals have fluctuated over the years, reaching a peak in 1998 when Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls faced off against the Utah Jazz That year, an average of 29.4 million people tuned in to watch the six-game series, which was eventually won by the Bulls.

In recent years however, the ratings for the NBA Finals have declined. In 2015, when the Golden State Warriors faced off against the Cleveland Cavaliers an average of only 15.5 million people watched the series. That number fell even lower in 2016, when an average of only 14.7 million people tuned in to watch the Warriors win their second consecutive championship.

Despite declining ratings in recent years the NBA Finals remain one of the most-watched annual sporting events in the United States

The History of the NBA Finals Ratings

The NBA Finals is the Championship Series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The Finals have been broadcast on television since 1947. ratings for the NBA Finals had declined in recent years but they rebounded in 2019.

The first NBA Finals was played in 1947, between the Philadelphia Warriors and the Chicago Stags. The rating for this game was a 2.8. The rating for the 2019 NBA Finals was a 9.1, which is a significant increase from 2018 when the rating was a 7.5.

The highest rated NBA Finals game ever was Game 7 of the 1998 NBA Finals between the Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz which received a 18.9 rating.

The lowest rated NBA Finals game was Game 3 of the 2007 NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and the Cleveland Cavaliers which received a 6.5 rating.

The Highest Rated NBA Finals Games

Since the NBA Finals began in 1947, there have been 72 different series between 53 different teams. Of those, 19 Finals have featured repeat matchups between the same two teams. The Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers have met a record 12 times in the Finals, while the Chicago Bulls and Utah Jazz (who never played each other in the regular season during their dominant runs in the 1990s) met twice. The Cavaliers and Warriors will meet for a fourth consecutive year in 2018, something that hasn’t happened since the Celtics and Lakers met four times in a row from 1984 to 1987.

The highest rated NBA Finals games ever were all Game 7’s: Cavaliers vs. Warriors in 2016 (28.2 million), Celtics vs. Lakers in 2010 (27.5 million), and Bulls vs. Jazz in 1998 (26.3 million). Three of the lowest rated Finals games ever were also Game 7’s: Spurs vs. Pistons in 2005 (9.2 million), Bulls vs. Jazz in 1997 (11 million), and Heat vs. Mavericks in 2011 (11.1 million).

The Lowest Rated NBA Finals Games

In this article, we will take a look at the five lowest rated NBA Finals games of all time. We will also discuss why these games had such low ratings.

The five lowest rated NBA Finals games are as follows:

5) Game 5 of the 2007 NBA Finals This was the third and final meeting between the San Antonio Spurs and the Cleveland Cavaliers The Spurs won the series in four games, but Game 5 was by far the least watched. It had a rating of 6.2 and was watched by 11.4 million people.

4) Game 3 of the 2001 NBA Finals This was the first ever meeting between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Philadelphia 76ers. The Lakers won the series in five games, but Game 3 was the least watched. It had a rating of 6.1 and was watched by 11.3 million people.

3) Game 4 of the 2000 NBA Finals This was the second meeting between the Lakers and the Indiana Pacers The Lakers won the series in six games, but Game 4 was the least watched. It had a rating of 6.0 and was watched by 11.2 million people.

2) Game 1 of the 1999 NBA Finals This was the first ever meeting between the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks The Spurs won the series in five games, but Game 1 was by far the least watched. It had a rating of 5.7 and was watched by 10.9 million people.

1) Game 5 of 1998 NBA Finals This was the final meeting between Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls and Karl Malone’s Utah Jazz . Malone’s Jazz had taken a 3-2 lead in what would be MJ’s last ever NBA Finals appearance, but they ultimately lost in six games . Despite this,Game 5 remainsthe lowest rated finals gameof all time , with a paltry5 .5 ratingand 10 .7 million viewers

The Most Watched NBA Finals Games

The most watched NBA Finals game ever was Game 7 of the 1998 NBA Finals between the Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz which was watched by an estimated 36 million people. The second most watched game was Game 6 of the 1993 NBA Finals between the Chicago Bulls and the Phoenix Suns which was watched by an estimated 34 million people.

The Least Watched NBA Finals Games

The least watched NBA Finals games are those that were played before 1986, when the NBA Finals began being broadcast on television. The first Finals game to be broadcast on television was Game 6 of the 1949 NBA Finals which was watched by an average of 9.8 million viewers. The following year, Game 7 of the 1950 NBA Finals was watched by an average of 11.4 million viewers.

The least watched NBA Finals game since 1986 was Game 3 of the 2007 NBA Finals which was watched by an average of 9.1 million viewers. This was also the least watched game of the 2007 NBA Finals

The Reasons for the NBA Finals Ratings Change Over the Years

The National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals is the annual Championship game of the NBA. The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The first five games are played in a 2–2–1–1–1 format (the team with home-court advantage hosts games 1, 2, 5 and 7), while the remaining two games are played in a 1–1 format (games 3 and 6 are hosted by the team without home-court advantage).

The Finals was originally broadcast on radio from 1947 to 1955, then on television from 1956 to 1973. The NBA Finals has been broadcast on ABC since 1973. NBC also aired Games 3 and 4 of the 1975 NBA Finals when ABC began airing Monday Night Football games in primetime during the fall. Since 2003, the Finals have been broadcast worldwide on ESPN International.

The ratings for the NBA Finals have varied over the years, with certain years seeing higher ratings than others. There are a few reasons for this variation, which include changes in the popularity of basketball changes in how Nielsen measures television ratings, and competition from other programming during the same time slot.

The most recent NBA Finals series that was played was between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers in 2017. The Warriors won the series in five games, with an average rating of 11.2 million viewers across all five games. This was down from the 2016 NBA Finals which had an average rating of 15 million viewers across seven games. However, it should be noted that Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals was watched by an average of 31 million viewers, which is one of the highest ratings for an NBA game in recent history.

There are a few reasons why the 2017 NBA Finals had lower ratings than previous years. One reason is that there was less interest in this particular match-up between these two teams, as they had met in three straight NBA Finals prior to this one. Additionally, competition from other programming played a role in lower ratings; for example, Game 1 of the 2017 MLB World Series aired at the same time as Game 1 of the NBA Finals and generated higher ratings than any individual game of the NBA Finals series. Finally, it is worth noting that television ratings measure total viewers regardless of age group; therefore, even though fewer people watched overall, it is possible that more young people or adults watched compared to other groups such as older adults or children

The Impact of the NBA Finals Ratings on Television

The NBA Finals are one of the most popular annual sporting events in the United States Each year, the Championship game draws in a large audience of television viewers. The ratings for the NBA Finals have fluctuated over the years, depending on various factors such as the teams competing, the location of the game, and the time slot it is aired in.

The highest rated NBA Finals game took place in 1998, when the Chicago Bulls faced off against the Utah Jazz The series was televisions most watched event that year, and drew in an average rating of 18.7. In recent years, ratings have declined slightly, but are still high compared to other sporting events. The 2017 Finals had an average rating of 16.4, which was down from 2016’s rating of 17.2. Nonetheless, it was still the most watched event on television that week.

There are many theories as to why NBA Finals ratings have fluctuated over the years. One reason may be that there is more competition for viewers’ attention now than there was in previous decades. With so many channels and streaming services available, there are more options for people to choose from when deciding what to watch. Another theory is that basketball itself has become less popular than it was in previous years. This could be due to a number of reasons, such as changes in demographics or interests among Americans.

Whatever the reason for changes in NBA Finals ratings, one thing is certain: they are still one of the most watched annual sporting events on television today.

The Future of the NBA Finals Ratings

The NBA Finals is the most important event in the Basketball World The championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA) has been held since 1947, and since then, it has been one of the most watched sporting event in the United States In recent years, though, the ratings for the NBA Finals have been declining. In 2015, for example, the average TV rating for the Finals was 11.6, which was down from 13.8 in 2010.

There are many reasons why the NBA Finals ratings might be declining. One reason could be that there is more competition for viewers’ attention now than there was in the past. There are more television channels and more streaming services than ever before, and people can watch whatever they want at any time. There are also more options for Live Sports events, such as Major League Baseball and college football games. Another reason for declining ratings could be that people are less invested in specific teams because of player movement due to Free agency It’s hard to remain a fan of a team when your favorite players leave to play elsewhere.

Despite the decline in recent years, the NBA Finals is still one of the most watched sporting events in America. And it’s possible that the ratings will rebound in future years as fans become more invested in specific teams and players.

The Importance of the NBA Finals Ratings

The NBA Finals is the championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The event was first held in 1947, and is currently open to any team that qualifies through their conference playoffs. The playoff system has changed several times over the years, but the basic structure has been in place since 1949. The tournament consists of a best-of-seven series played between the winners of the Eastern and Western Conference Finals

The NBA Finals is one of the most watched sporting events in the world, with ratings consistentlystrong year after year. In fact, for much of its history, the NBA Finals was the highest rated program on television. In recent years, however, viewership has declined somewhat. There are a number of possible explanations for this decline, including increased competition from other sports and entertainment programming.

Despite the decline in ratings the NBA Finals remains one of the most popular sporting events in the world. Millions of people tune in every year to watch superstars like Lebron James and Steph Curry compete for a chance to win an NBA Championship

How the NBA Finals Ratings Have Changed Over the Years