Airing on a separate night — and much earlier time — than the first round, the second round of the NBA Draft took a hit that not even the selection of Bronny James could overcome.
Thursday’s second round of the NBA Draft, which was moved up from primetime to the late afternoon in order to avoid the presidential debate, averaged 895,000 viewers on ESPN — down 25% from 1.19 million for last year’s second round and 20% from the second round in 2022 (1.12M), both of which aired in the late night hours immediately following the first round.
Viewership peaked at 1.23 million in the 6 PM ET quarter-hour, when the Lakers selected LeBron James’ son Bronny with the 55th pick.
This year’s NBA Draft was split into a two-day format for the first time, putting the event on par with the other three major pro sports drafts, each of which last multiple days. (Those other drafts have considerably more rounds.) The second round was originally slated to air in primetime at 8 PM ET until the leading presidential candidates set a debate for the same night.
Thursday’s opening round averaged 4.41 million across ESPN and ABC, down a more modest 11% from last year’s first round.
Even in an afternoon timeslot, the second round of the draft outpaced the opening rounds of last year’s Major League Baseball and NHL drafts (744K and 681K respectively).
