Opposite the final day of the college basketball season and Tiger Woods‘ return to broadcast, NBA ratings dropped on ABC for the second straight week.
The Lakers’ win over the Mavericks last Sunday drew a 2.0/5 final rating on ABC, down 20% from a 2.5 for last year’s comparable Lakers/Rockets game, and the lowest rating for a Laker game on broadcast television since Lakers/Suns drew a 1.9/4 in March ’07.
This marks the second straight week ABC has seen at leat a 20% drop for its NBA coverage. Suns/Spurs on March 8 drew a 1.6, off 24% from the previous year’s game.
Through last Sunday, ABC is averaging a 2.7 rating and 4.3 million viewers for twelve NBA telecasts, up 13% in ratings and 23% in viewership from a 2.4 and 3.5 million through the comparable date (thirteen telecasts) a year ago.
Lowest rated Laker games on ABC since 2002.
asterisk (*) indicates regional coverage
| Date | Time | Game | Rating |
| Sun., 3/5/06 | 1:00 PM | Lakers/Cavaliers* | 1.7/4 |
| Sun., 4/10/05 | 3:30 PM | Lakers/Kings* | 1.8/4 |
| Sun., 3/4/07 | 3:30 PM | Lakers/Suns | 1.9/4 |
| Sun., 2/6/05 | 3:30 PM | Lakers/Rockets | 2.0/4 |
| Sun., 3/12/06 | 3:30 PM | Supersonics/Lakers | 2.0/4 |
| Sun., 3/15/09 | 3:30 PM | Mavericks/Lakers | 2.0/5 |
| Sun., 4/2/06 | 3:30 PM | Rockets/Lakers* | 2.1/5 |
