Featuring a Canadian team for the first time, the NBA Finals got off to its slowest start in the metered markets since 2009.
Thursday’s Warriors-Raptors NBA Finals Game 1 earned a 10.1 overnight rating, down 18% from Cavaliers-Warriors last year (12.3) and down 19% from Cavaliers-Warriors in 2017 (12.4).
The 10.1 is the lowest for Game 1 of the NBA Finals in a full decade — since Magic-Lakers in 2009 (8.9). It is also the lowest for any NBA Finals game since Heat-Spurs Game 3 in 2013, a 36-point San Antonio blowout (10.0).
The 18% decline is the steepest for Game 1 of the finals since 2005 (Pistons-Spurs, -24%).
This year’s NBA Finals is the first to involve the Raptors, whose Canadian fanbase is not tracked by Nielsen.
Last year’s Game 1 had a 36.1 rating in Cleveland, equivalent to 522,000 homes — or nearly half a ratings point (0.44). Subtracting the Cleveland market from last year’s number, the overnight would still have been around an 11.8.
The Bay Area led all markets Thursday night with a 26.4 rating, but that was down 15% from both last year (31.1) and 2017 (30.9) to rank as the market’s lowest NBA Finals rating in the Warriors’ run of five straight appearances. The previous low was a 28.8 for Game 1 in 2015. Golden State’s 21 other finals games have each topped a 30.0.
Warriors-Raptors drew a slightly higher overnight than Game 1 of the World Series last October, which had a 10.0. It ranks third among sporting events since the Super Bowl, behind the Virginia-Texas Tech NCAA Tournament final (12.4) and Michigan State-Duke in the Elite Eight (10.5).
NBA Finals Game 1 overnights, past two decades
[Numbers from ESPN PR/Twitter 5.31, Sports Business Daily 5.31]
