The least interesting game of the Warriors/Spurs series still attracted strong numbers Tuesday night — and without a Miami Heat lead-in.
Game 5 of the Warriors/Spurs second round NBA playoff series drew 5.3 million viewers on TNT Tuesday night, the fifth-largest audience of the NBA Playoffs on cable. There were no comparable games last year or in 2011.
The Warriors/Spurs series now accounts for four of the six most-viewed playoff games on cable this year, with only a pair of Heat/Bulls games earning larger audiences.
Tuesday’s numbers were all the more impressive considering that the game had a weaker lead-in than usual. While Games 1-3 had the benefit of airing after a Heat/Bulls game, Game 5 aired after the fairly weak Pacers/Knicks series.
Game 4 between the Knicks and Pacers drew 4.1 million viewers, down 26% from Pacers/Heat Game 5 last year (5.5M), and down 21% from Hawks/Bulls Game 5 in 2011 (5.1M).
10 Most-Viewed NBA Playoff Games on Cable
Through Tuesday
|
#
|
Date | Away | Home |
Gm. #
|
Net |
Viewers
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1
|
Fri., 5/10/13 | Heat | Bulls |
Game 3
|
ESPN |
6.6M
|
|
2
|
Mon., 5/6/13 | Bulls | Heat |
Game 1
|
TNT |
5.5M
|
|
3
|
Mon., 5/6/13 | Warriors | Spurs |
Game 1
|
TNT |
5.5M
|
|
4
|
Fri., 5/10/13 | Spurs | Warriors |
Game 3
|
ESPN |
5.4M
|
|
5
|
Tue., 5/14/13 | Warriors | Spurs |
Game 5
|
TNT |
5.3M
|
|
6
|
Wed., 5/8/13 | Warriors | Spurs |
Game 2
|
TNT |
5.3M
|
|
7
|
Wed., 5/8/13 | Bulls | Heat |
Game 2
|
TNT |
5.3M
|
|
8
|
Mon., 5/13/13 | Thunder | Grizzlies |
Game 4
|
TNT |
5.0M
|
|
9
|
Sun., 4/21/13 | Bucks | Heat |
Game 1
|
TNT |
4.9M
|
|
10
|
Mon., 5/13/13 | Heat | Bulls |
Game 4
|
TNT |
4.9M
|
(Tue. numbers from The Futon Critic)
