If the NBA was looking to score a big ratings windfall to kick off a new season, this wasn’t it.
Viewership for NBA games has dropped by double-digit percentages through the opening weeks of the regular season, according to Sports Media Watch. Compared to the same juncture in the 2023-24 NBA calendar, NBA ratings on ESPN are down 28 percent year over year. Ratings for the 2024 Boston Celtics-Dallas Mavericks Finals were reportedly the lowest the league has seen in three years.
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Viewership for most live sporting events has tailed off in the cord-cutting era. Traditional ratings metrics are still instrumental as a determining factor in advertising revenues, even though they fail to capture an audience that increasingly relies on streaming platforms to watch games.
Nonetheless, any significant dip in ratings has the attention of the league offices in Manhattan. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has an interesting theory as to why this year’s television ratings are down.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 26: NBA commissioner Adam Silver prepares to announce the first round pick by the Atlanta Hawks during the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on… NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 26: NBA commissioner Adam Silver prepares to announce the first round pick by the Atlanta Hawks during the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 26, 2024 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. Silver blamed the election of President Donald Trump and the World Series for the early season ratings dip. More Sarah Stier/Getty Images