The NBA Draft was just the latest sporting event to take a hit in the ratings.
Wednesday’s NBA Draft averaged 2.13 million viewers across ESPN and ESPNU, down 31% from both last year (3.09M) and 2018 (3.07M) and the smallest audience for the event since at least 2007. Figures do not include the 82,000 who watched coverage on NBA TV.
This year’s NBA Draft took place five months later than scheduled and more than a month after the NBA Finals (it typically occurs shortly after the NBA Finals in late June). In addition, it featured prospects who have not played a meaningful game since the college basketball season was halted and the NCAA Tournament canceled in mid-March.
The first round of the draft averaged 2.65 million — ESPN’s top NBA audience in the month of November since 2018 — and ranked second for the night in adults 18-49 and 18-34 behind “The Masked Singer” on FOX.
The steep decline and multi-year low for the NBA Draft is in keeping with the broader trend facing the sports media industry. The NBA Finals, World Series, Stanley Cup Final, final rounds of the Masters and U.S. Open — and more — have hit historic lows since the wave of cancellations and postponements in March.
As one would expect, the NBA Draft was no match for this year’s NFL Draft, which jumped 35% to a record-high 8.4 million viewers over three days in April. The NFL Draft, it should be noted, was one of four live sports events between mid-March and mid-May (along with the WNBA Draft, Pro Bull Riders Tour and UFC).
Compared to other sports drafts, the NBA easily outdrew the first night of the Major League Baseball Draft in June (611K on ESPN/MLB Network) and the first night of the NHL Draft in October (259K on NBCSN). The NHL Draft, which like the NBA’s was moved to a different time of year, declined a similar 29%.
NBA Draft viewership trend
[Nielsen estimates from ESPN, ShowBuzz Daily 11.19]
