Lakers-Heat Game 1 lowest finals viewership in recorded history

[The Hick]

This isn't Milwaukee. This isn't San Antonio. It's the freakin Lakers. So how is this possible???


https://sports.yahoo.com/game-1-nba-...225636681.html

Game 1 of the Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat brought in only 7.41 million viewers to ABC, according to The Hollywood Reporter. That is reportedly the lowest viewership seen for the Finals since at least 1994, when total viewers began to be regularly recorded.

The number is down 45 percent from last year’s Game 1 between the Golden State Warriors and Toronto Raptors, which had 13.51 million viewers. This is the fourth straight year Game 1 viewership has gone down compared to the previous season.


The previous low for the Finals was reportedly 8.06 million in Game 3 of the 2007 NBA Finals. That was the third game of a sweep by the San Antonio Spurs of the Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron James’ first Finals appearance.

Damn Covid strikes again.

[Shogon]

Streaming, political bombardment, no crowds. Multitude of factors.

I mean the product is really not compelling at all to anyone that isn't a basketball diehard fan. No fans? lol. I thought it would be better, but it's not. The crowd definitely adds to the excitement. It's a rather lackluster product without the crowd and you have to be a true fan to give a shit.

Nothing feels as important without the crowd hype. This is the biggest factor but I'm open to being wrong about it. I have rooted for LeBron for years and I find myself watching these playoffs and these Finals and it's just kinda like... lol... eh, whatever.

The only play of the entire playoffs where I was actively celebrating was Luka's shot against the Clippers.

[rawimpact]

Yeah I wonder why no one is tuning into a basketball game since there's nothing going on in this world and they've made absolutely no changes from previous successful years.

[CeltsGarlic]

Yeah I wonder why no one is tuning into a basketball game since there's nothing going on in this world and they've made absolutely no changes from previous successful years.

What changes you have in mind?

[ralph_i_el]

Golf, Car Racing, Hockey, and the Kentucky Derby all also have seen similar drops in viewership....so I doubt the politics are the reason.

I wonder if they are able to accurately come up with viewership from streaming. I've been watching all the games with the TnT app or ESPN app so far.

[rawimpact]

What changes you have in mind?

For more viewership?

Take politics out of basketball and sports for one.
Space out the games to have two on the 'weekends' -- one game Friday night and another on Sunday. Tonight's game and Sundays will be the only two i'll be able to catch this series because I live on the East Coat. I'm not staying up until midnight on a work night to watch a blowout.

[oldtimer28]

This isn't Milwaukee. This isn't San Antonio. It's the freakin Lakers. So how is this possible???


https://sports.yahoo.com/game-1-nba-...225636681.html




Damn Covid strikes again.

Blm ruined it.

[Phoenix]

To be honest I haven't really tuned in much since the 2nd round ended. Part of it is I get the games after midnight in the UK and sometimes I just cant be bothered to stay up. But also, for me the most compelling matchups have already happened. Clips/Mavs, Lakers/Rockets, Celtics/Raptors. The rest of the season was a formality the moment Kawhi 1/11'd has way out of the playoffs vs 7'1 Brian Windhorst ( that I am glad I stayed up to watch )

[nineiron]

LeLowRatings

LMFAO

[nineiron]

who tf wants to watch Lebronze front run his way to a gifted ring? only bron stans.. because they're retarded

[ArbitraryWater]

Blm festivals

[Phoenix]

League spent the entire season hyping Lakers and Clippers. Bucks and Lakers would have drawn too. Basically the two teams/players that would have drawn ratings in a series against the Lakers didnt even make the conference finals.

[Real Men Wear Green]

Along with NBA ratings being generally down:

1. This is the least-hyped Finals of my lifetime. They aren't running the normal level of commercials and the whole thing feels more like they're just trying to get the season over than genuine excitement over crowning the new Champion. This whole postseason we haven't known when teams were going to play and the whole world is weird.

2. No one thinks the Heat will win. It's not compelling. The NBA was hurt when Milwaukee lost because no EC team has a strong on paper argument for being great other than them. Miami plays tough and deserves respect but at the end of the day they're still a 5th seed.

3. I am sympathetic to it but the BLM stuff hurts viewership. If it helps reform certain issues then it's worth it but no one turns on a sporting event so that they can hear about social issues and/or politics. This is not me saying they have to stop just pointing out a reality.

After the pummelling in Game 1 this could get worse. Only hope for ratings is if Miami can win tonight (I think they play tonight, not even sure).

[nineiron]

LMFAO @ all these bron stans blaming BLM for the low viewership.

[Real Men Wear Green]

LMFAO @ all these bron stans blaming BLM for the low viewership.

I'm not a "stan" but it's a fact that he's more famous than everyone else in the series combined times 10. If he wasn't there only die-hard fans would be watching. Which may already be the case. BLM isn't the only reason ratings are down but it is a reason some people won't watch and isn't going to get anyone that wasn't a fan to start watching. If left to the owner's desires the NBA would be publicly apolitical like most businesses. "REpublicans buy sneakers too." People hate to hear that but it's the truth.