Christmas Day is an important time for the NBA, and this year they went all-out with several highly anticipated matchups. In a statement on social media today, the NBA revealed the viewership numbers and celebrated after reaching an impressive milestone.
“The NBA delivered its most-watched Christmas Day in five years, with viewership up 84% vs. last year across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, Disney+, and ESPN+,” wrote the league on X. “The NBA on Christmas Day averaged 5.25 million viewers per game in the U.S. The matchup between the Lakers and Warriors is the most-watched NBA regular season and Christmas Day game in five years – averaged 7.76 million viewers and peaked with 8.32 million viewers.”
It’s no secret that the NBA has been fending off rumors of a rating problem and there have been many conversations about how to bring back the fans of those that they lost.
For many, the biggest issue was the oversaturation of the three-pointer. Thanks to players like Damian Lillard and Stephen Curry, the threeball has become the focal point of NBA offenses and teams are shooting at a higher rate than ever before. This trend has limited variation in playstyles and can often lead to some ugly, stagnant games.
It’s not just fans who have expressed concern about the evolution of the three-pointer. From Kevin Garnett to LeBron James, many players can agree that something has to change to appease the fans and create the best possible product on the court.
Other critics point to things like the NBA’s broken All-Star weekend. Instead of putting resources to breathe life back into their yearly event, they are focusing their efforts on the NBA Emirates Cup and the play-in tournament. Many fans resent the league for how it has declined in these areas.
Whatever the case, a popular talking point this season has been the NBA’s decline in viewership and it suggests that many people are not pleased with where things stand right now. It’s obvious now that the league must take some action, but what they should do remains uncertain.
Things got so loud with this discussion that Adam Silver himself was even asked to chime in on it. It’s an issue that he’s taking very seriously and it seems he’s already got people working on ways to address the problem.
The good news is, that there are still reasons to be optimistic about the NBA’s future. This year, their Christmas Day games were a massive success. Amid several high-quality matchups, it was the Lakers and Warriors who stole the show last night, who went toe-to-toe in an epic battle down to the wire.
Across all major networks, the NBA saw a massive 84% increase in ratings on Christmas Day, the most in the last five years. In total, the NBA averaged 7.76 million viewers with a peak of 8.32 million.
It’s a major win for the NBA and a sign that people are still interested in watching the game’s biggest stars battle it out on the biggest stage. If nothing else, the league reinforced their ownership of the Christmas holiday and it should set them up for a lucrative second half of the season.
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