LeBron James‘ second NBA game since rejoining the Cavaliers generated strong numbers on ESPN.
Friday’s Cavaliers/Bulls NBA game drew a 2.4 final rating and 3.9 million viewers on ESPN, up 50% in ratings and 58% in viewership from Heat/Nets last year (1.6, 2.5M), up 33% and 40%, respectively, from Heat/Knicks in 2012 (1.8, 2.8M), and the most-viewed regular season game on ESPN since Heat/Bulls in March 2013.
The Cavaliers’ win earned the sixth-largest NBA regular season audience on ESPN since the network resumed airing games in 2002. LeBron James has played in six of the top nine.
Cavaliers/Bulls finished surprisingly close to Knicks/Cavaliers on TNT the previous night, James’ first game since rejoining the Cavaliers in the offseason (2.6, 4.0M). That game had substantially more hype, but also faced strong competition from pro and college football.
The Clippers/Lakers nightcap drew a 1.8 and 2.9 million, up 20% in ratings and 33% in viewership from Spurs/Lakers sans-Kobe Bryant last year (1.5, 2.2M) and down 14% and 6%, respectively, from Clippers/Lakers in 2012 (2.1, 3.1M).
Together, the games averaged a 2.2 and 3.4 million — the highest rated (tie) and second-most watched Opening Week doubleheader ever on ESPN.
Most-Watched NBA Regular Season Games on ESPN
| # | Date | Away | Rating | Viewers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fri., 1/17/03 | Lakers/Rockets | 3.1 | 4.88M |
| 2 | Sat., 12/25/04 | Pistons/Pacers | 2.9 | 4.33M |
| 3 | Sun., 2/27/11 | Knicks/Heat | 2.7 | 4.21M |
| 4 | Sat., 12/25/10 | Bulls/Knicks | 2.3 | 4.02M |
| 5 | Wed., 3/27/13 | Heat/Bulls | 2.5 | 3.90M |
| 6 | Fri., 10/31/14 | Cavaliers/Bulls | 2.4 | 3.89M |
| 7 | Wed., 1/29/14 | Thunder/Heat | 2.4 | 3.86M |
| 8 | Mon., 3/19/13 | Heat/Celtics | 2.5 | 3.79M |
| 9 | Fri., 10/29/10 | Magic/Heat | 2.3 | 3.77M |
| 10 | Tue., 12/25/12 | Celtics/Nets | 2.2 | 3.74M |
(Fri. numbers from ESPN)
