Viewership declined yet again for the NBA Playoffs.
Game 5 of the Spurs/Clippers NBA playoff series drew 4.0 million viewers on TNT Tuesday night, down 15% from Warriors/Clippers last year (4.7M) but up 28% from Grizzlies/Clippers in 2013 (3.1M). Keep in mind last year’s game attracted unusual mainstream media attention for an off-court controversy.
All four Spurs/Clippers games on cable have had a year-over-year decline in viewership. Overnight ratings were flat for Sunday’s Game 4 on ABC; final numbers were not yet available. Despite the drop, Game 5 earned the second-largest audience of the postseason on cable — trailing only Pelicans/Warriors Game 2 (4.1M).
Earlier in the night, Mavericks/Rockets Game 5 drew 3.3 million — down 17% from Wizards/Bulls last year (4.0M) but up 13% from Warriors/Nuggets in 2013 (3.0M).
Through Tuesday, 28 of 33 NBA playoff games have had declines in viewership. That excludes Sunday’s Game 4 doubleheader on ABC, for which final numbers were not yet available. Of those 28 declines, 22 have been by double-digits.
Compared to 2013, only 16 of 33 games have declined.
(Tue. numbers via TV By the Numbers)
