2020 nba finals viewership
The 1987 NBA Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics was the highest rated and most watched NBA Finals series on CBS , averaging a 15.9 rating / 32 share and 24.12 million viewers. [20] On the final day of the season, Magic Johnson resigned as president of basketball operations,[21] and head coach Luke Walton and the team mutually agreed to part ways a few days later. [35] The Heat led 23–10 in the middle of the first quarter before the Lakers outscored them 55–25 to lead by 17 at halftime. [15] After the season resumed, they earned the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference. Steph Curry and co. have been a reliable ratings banker for half a decade, but their miserable 15-50 season has surely cost the league ratings-wise, both before and after lockdown. However, viewership of the 2020 NHL's Stanley Cup Finals was 61% lower than last year, while the final round of golf's U.S. Open was down 56%. James was named the Finals MVP for the fourth time in his career. [39], Butler finished with 40 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists for a triple-double to lead Miami to a 115–104 win as Heat starters Adebayo and Dragić remained sidelined. President Trump attacked the NBA last week, saying the league is in “big trouble” and blaming its supposedly poor ratings on the players kneeling during the national anthem to protest police brutality and racial inequality. So far this summer, PUT levels are down around 18% compared to the end of March and April, which is when these games would have been airing in a regular season. The team made 66% of its two-point attempts. From the beginning of re-start, it became abundantly clear that NBA games weren’t necessarily going to hit the heights of an average regular season. “I really don’t think the basketball community are sad about losing his viewership, him viewing the game,” James said during an interview week before last. Snyder Cut of ‘Justice League’ Accidentally Posts Early for Some HBO Max Users. [44], Butler had 35 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists to lead Miami to a 111–108 win and stave off elimination, bringing the series to 3–2. In the United States, the Finals were televised by ABC in English and ESPN Deportes in Spanish. Get ready for an NBA Finals 2020 rematch on ABC with five key stats to … Adebayo led Miami with 25 points and 10 rebounds. [40] However, the Heat outscored the Lakers 26–13 to finish the game and cut the Lakers' lead to 2–1. The 2020 NBA playoffs were then played as a conventional post-season tournament. There’s a reason why most sports don’t play in July and August, it’s because PUTs are down and you’re competing with lifestyle,” McGovern says. [38] Rajon Rondo had 16 points, while Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Kyle Kuzma also added 11 for the Lakers. The Lakers did not trail for the final 20 minutes, though Miami would remain close throughout. [22] During the offseason, general manager Rob Pelinka hired Frank Vogel as the Lakers' new head coach,[23] and he acquired six-time All-Star power forward Anthony Davis from the New Orleans Pelicans in a three-way trade that also included the Washington Wizards. Animated Musical About Demon Hunting K-Pop Girl Group in the Works at Sony (EXCLUSIVE), Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Interview: ‘Trash-a-thon,’ ‘Bomb,’ ‘Terrible State’ Among U.K. [12], Miami began the season with two undrafted players in their starting lineup, Kendrick Nunn and Duncan Robinson. In those time frames, the NBA has been 145% larger than Fox News in the younger demo. While several Fox News shows may have beaten the NBA in the coveted 18-49 demographic on that same night, as Travis also pointed out, the league has been trouncing Fox News in the same demo on nights when the games have been broadcast in primetime on ESPN and TNT. The Lakers drew close to make it 60–56 at the half. [49] He also became the first with 35 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists and five steals in a Finals game, and he was just the second NBA player to reach those marks in the playoffs, joining Gary Payton in 2000. [63] Game 3, which aired opposite NBC's Sunday Night Football coverage, had its viewership continue to decrease to a new record low of approximately 5.94 million. For instance, the NHL is up 57% versus the end of last year’s regular season, and MLB games so far this season are up 18% on last year. Just yesterday, the Utah Jazz and the Denver Nuggets tipped off at 10:30am PT, while later in the week, the Indiana Pacers and the Miami Heat will play the second game in their series at 10am PT on a Thursday. According to Nielsen numbers, NBA viewership (P2+) was down around 13% versus last season before the shutdown (prior to March 12). Miami then committed a shot-clock violation, and Caldwell-Pope drove for a basket for a seven-point lead. Last year’s NBA Finals drew the smallest TV audience since 2007 and was down 19% from the previous Finals. The final round of the Masters failed to crack even a 4.0 and averaged fewer viewers than the hiatus-era exhibition “The Match II: Champions For Charity.” A possible play-in tournament for the eighth seed in each conference would then be held if the ninth seed finished the regular season within four games of the eighth seed (this play-in tournament was used in the Western conference only). Why Isn't Oprah's Bombshell Interview With Meghan and Harry on Paramount Plus? “There are a lot of reasons why they had decline, but you couldn’t really say that was because of protests.”. “I would say anybody who’s looking at average rating and say it’s down or up would be irresponsible. [28] After play resumed in the bubble, the Lakers clinched both their first Pacific Division title since 2012 and the top seed in the Western Conference playoffs for the first time since the 2009–10 season. The NIT will start on March 17 with 16 teams instead of 32 and, instead of being held at campus sites until the semifinals and finals in New York City, will be entirely held in the Dallas-Fort Worth region at the Comerica Center in Frisco and the University of North Texas Coliseum in Denton. “Head to head on Monday night on cable: Tucker Carlson viewership: 4.5 million. After lying on the floor for minutes, Davis exited the game and began the second quarter on the bench, which helped the Heat amass a 11-point lead. “Why would I ever compare the two,” says McGovern. [13] They outscored Miami 36–16 in the second period and led by as many as 30 points in the first half. Read Next: ITV Profits Hit Hard by COVID-19 Impact, But Productions Back on Track, Streaming Development, Series Orders Recovering Faster From COVID-19 Than Linear, According to Industry Analyst, Docuseries ‘Seeds of Deceit’ Unravels Twisted Tale of Fertility Doctor Who Used His Own Sperm, Film Studios Could Adopt ‘Mix-and-Match’ Theatrical Model After COVID-19, ITV Chief Believes Meghan Markle’s Mental Health Revelations, Programming Head Talking to Piers Morgan, Good Morning, Britain: Meghan Markle Didn’t Spill the Tea, She Smashed the China. However, making a concrete assessment of the NBA ratings since re-start, or finding one single reason for their decline, is far from simple. [3][4], The Lakers were the No. [9] Under the plan, thirteen Western Conference teams and nine Eastern Conference teams, which include all clubs within six games of a playoff spot, played eight regular-season "seeding" games. The National Basketball Players Association approved the plan a day later. [39] They never got closer than 10 in the final period. [6], The Finals were originally scheduled for June, but the season was suspended in mid-March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The first week of games since the re-start were down 4% from the NBA’s pre-corona average, however, primetime games on ESPN and TNT in that same time period were up 6% in viewership when compared with the first chunk of the season. The game was a nail-biter, yet the numbers (3.4 million viewers) were the lowest for any Lakers-Clippers game so far this season. [47] With 3:13 remaining, Robinson made a three-pointer to give the Heat a two-point lead, which began a run of either a tie or a lead change on the game's next nine scoring possessions,[49] including six straight where James and Butler traded scores. ", "James and Lakers advance with 131–122 win over Trail Blazers", "Welcome back: Lakers, LeBron headed to the conference finals", "James, Lakers beat Nuggets in Game 5 to reach NBA Finals", "NBA Finals: LeBron James finding new ways to define greatness", "Anthony Davis, LeBron James lead Lakers to dominating win over Heat in NBA Finals opener", "Lakers, LeBron roll in Game 1 of finals, top Heat 116–98", "NBA Finals: Dwight Howard starts at center for Lakers in Game 1 vs. Heat", "Lakers defeat the Miami Heat in Game 2 of NBA Finals to take 2–0 series lead", "Halfway home: Lakers top Heat 124–114 for 2–0 Finals lead", "Butler's big night helps Heat cut Lakers' Finals lead to 2–1", "Jimmy Butler makes it a series: Heat beat Lakers in Game 3", "LeBron James says Los Angeles Lakers 'not concerned' after Game 3 loss to short-handed Miami Heat", "Jimmy Butler logs 3rd 40-point triple-double in NBA Finals history", "Lakers top Heat 102–96, take 3–1 lead in NBA Finals", "Lakers find a way to hold off Heat to take 3–1 NBA Finals series lead", "The Miami Heat Hold on to Beat the Lakers in Game 5", "LeBron James gives his all, but Lakers can't finish Jimmy Butler and Heat in Game 5", "Lakers' title celebration on hold after coming up short in LeBron-Butler duel", "Heat force Game 6, top Lakers to stave off elimination", "NBA Finals: LeBron James vs. Jimmy Butler is touching history", "Inside The Box Score: 2020 NBA Finals, Game 5", "Jimmy Butler Empties the Tank to Stave Off LeBron and Elimination", "The Lakers' Winding Path Ends With a Championship", "LeBron James makes history, wins Finals MVP with 3 different franchises", "NBA Finals: The scenes of a Lakers title celebration like no other", "Watch the 2020 NBA Finals on ABC: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Miami Heat | ABC Updates", "China state television to air Game 5 of NBA finals after one-year ban", "Game 1 of NBA Finals sees lowest viewership in recorded ratings history", "Lakers-Heat Game 1 reportedly attracts lowest NBA Finals viewership since 1994", "Lakers and Heat's NBA Finals TV ratings are recent winners but historic losers", "NBA Finals posts smallest audience ever in Game 1", "Friday Final Ratings: ABC with Clear Prime Time Victory Despite Continued Record-Low NBA Finals Viewership", "Game 4 better, but NBA Finals continues to struggle", "Friday Final Ratings: NBA and MLB Each Rise to New Postseason Highs in Total Viewers", "NBA Finals ratings show improvement, but still low, at series end", "Lakers Championship Parade Delayed Until Safer Climate", "Mayor Garcetti to L.A. fans: Oh, yes, we'll celebrate Dodgers and Lakers titles", The Last Season: A Team in Search of Its Soul, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2020_NBA_Finals&oldid=1008611749, September 2020 sports events in the United States, October 2020 sports events in the United States, Basketball events postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Pages using Template:College with unsupported name, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 24 February 2021, at 05:06. “The biggest competition right now is summer. [55] Butler became only the second player in a Finals series to lead his team outright in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks, joining James in 2016 with the Cavaliers.[13]. He became the first player in league history to be named Finals MVP with three different franchises (two with the Heat, one with the Cleveland Cavaliers and one with the Lakers) and along with teammate Danny Green, jointly the third players to win the NBA Finals with three different teams. The Lakers' Anthony Davis had 34 points, nine rebounds and five assists in his first Finals game, and LeBron James added 25 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists to lead Los Angeles to a 116–98 win over Miami. [31][32][33] The Lakers reached the Finals for the first time since 2010, while James was making his ninth trip in 10 seasons.[34]. [49], James had 28 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists to lead the Lakers to a 106–93 win for their 17th league championship in franchise history and first since 2010. The Lakers dedicated the season to him. Top eight teams from Summer Season participate . The NBA's ratings also help up … [54], Lakers head coach Frank Vogel decided to start with a smaller, quicker lineup, inserting guard Alex Caruso for Howard and moving Davis to center. [48][52] He and James scored 68 of the team's 108 points. [25] Later in the month, legendary former Lakers guard Kobe Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash along with his daughter Gianna and seven others. [47] By the end of the game, he was noticeably limping after another tumble around the basket. “And that’s all I got to say.”. James passed to a wide-open Green at the top of the key, but Green missed a 3-pointer with 7.1 seconds left. It even led to a heated argument between Dallas … The first night of bubble games was headlined by a mouth-watering encounter between LeBron James’ Los Angeles Lakers and Kawhi Leonard’s Los Angeles Clippers. The point here is not only that we’re comparing apples and oranges, but also that it depends entirely on which way you slice the fruit. [13], James ended the series averaging 29.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game. [35], Miami's Jimmy Butler twisted his left ankle before the end of the first half, but he remained in the game and finished with 23 points. With the Dodgers winning the World Series later in the month, Los Angeles repeated its achievement of having NBA and World Series champions in the same year, as both the Lakers and Dodgers had won in 1988. [65] Despite the lows, both Game 1 and Game 2 were the most watched program for their respective days. Davis, who was in foul trouble early, was held to just 15 points and five rebounds. [41] Herro and Olynyk both scored 17 points for Miami, while Kyle Kuzma and Markieff Morris both had 19 points off the bench for the Lakers. At WSN, we provide you with free NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, college basketball, college football, MLS, NASCAR, UFC / MMA, horse racing, esports and golf tournament predictions, odds and betting picks, the latest news from the world of US and international sports, fixtures and stats, as well as interesting stories published in our sports blog section. [19] Their major free agent acquisition, LeBron James, suffered the first major injury in his career, and he missed the playoffs for the first time since 2005.