The first NBA Finals to involve a Canadian team continues to struggle in the United States.
Sunday’s Warriors-Raptors NBA Finals Game 2 earned an 8.0 rating and 13.89 million viewers on ABC, down 22% in ratings and 25% in viewership from last year (10.3, 18.47M) and down 25% and 30% respectively from 2017 (10.7, 19.73M), both of which were Warriors-Cavaliers matchups.
Golden State’s win ranks as the lowest rated NBA Finals Game 2 since 2007. That year, Cavaliers-Spurs had a 5.6 opposite the series finale of “The Sopranos” on HBO. It was the least-watched since Lakers-Celtics in 2008 (13.50M).
Overall, the 8.0 rating is tied as the fourth-lowest for Game 2 of the finals since at least 1985.
This year’s NBA Finals is the first to involve the Raptors, whose Canadian fanbase is not measured by Nielsen. Game 2 had 4.3 million viewers across TSN, CTV2, and RDS, a record for the NBA in Canada. If one were to include the Canadian audience, Game 2 would combine for approximately 18.2 million viewers — still down from the past two years, but ahead of the U.S.-only audience in 2016 and 2002-14.
In the U.S., Game 2 had a 4.8 rating in adults 18-49 — down 26% from last year (6.5) and down 32% from 2017 (7.1). The 4.8 ties Game 1 as the lowest for any finals game since 2007. It had a 4.1 in adults 18-34, down 27% from last year (5.6), down 37% from 2017 (6.5), and the lowest for any finals game since 2007. The previous low was a 4.2 in Game 1.
Ratings also declined in adults 25-54 (5.3, -26%).
Among basketball games this year, Games 1 and 2 of the finals rank fourth and fifth behind the NCAA Tournament national championship (11.6, 19.63M), Texas Tech-Michigan State in the Final Four (9.1, 15.84M) and Zion Williamson‘s most recent basketball game, Duke’s Elite Eight loss to Michigan State (9.4, 16.20M). Games 1 and 2 rank second only to the national championship in adults 18-49 and 18-34.
Versus the corresponding game of last year’s World Series, Game 2 had a lower rating (vs. 8.1) but a larger audience (vs. 13.46M). Game 1 trailed the World Series opener in both measures. As one would expect, the NBA maintains a significant advantage in the young adult demographics. In adults 18-49, the 4.8 rating for Games 1 and 2 topped every game of last year’s Fall Classic.
The World Series had a better matchup on paper — Boston vs. Los Angeles — but usually lags behind the NBA Finals (2016 a noted exception).
Like Game 1, Game 2 posted an unusually steep 22% drop from the overnight to the final rating, tied as the biggest for any finals game since 2003. Historical NBA Finals ratings (dating back to 1988) are available here.
[Numbers from Nielsen via ShowBuzz Daily 6.4]
