The situation for the National Basketball Association can be summed up thusly: ratings for Indiana Pacers games are up 43% on FSN Midwest, while attendance for the team is down 28%.
This pattern is repeated, though in much smaller proportions, leaguewide. NBA ratings are up on ESPN, TNT, and the majority of local broadcasts. Meanwhile, attendance throughout the league is down.
John Dempsey of Variety reports ratings for NBA games on ESPN and TNT are up across the board in the key demographics of adults 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54.
Fox Sports Net, which broadcasts local coverage of 17 NBA teams, has seen its ratings climb by 12%, including an increase of 146% for Milwaukee Bucks games on FSN Wisconsin. Comcast, which holds the local broadcast rights to five NBA teams, has seen its ratings climb by 20% — led by a 76% increase in ratings for coverage of the Boston Celtics on Comcast SportsNet New England.
One could look at the generally good ratings as a sign of league health. However, slumping attendance could be a signal of problems for the league — even in some of the markets where the ratings have been climbing. The aforementioned Indiana Pacers, with ratings up 43%, have seen their attendance plummet to second-worst in the Eastern Conference, were averaging fewer than 13,000 fans per game as of December 3 — compared to over 17,000 fans at that point last year. Only the Philadelphia 76ers have worse attendance in the conference.
Through December 3, nine NBA teams are averaging fewer than 15,000 fans per game. At this point last year, no NBA team averaged fewer than 15,000 in attendance. The 76ers and New Orleans Hornets are both averaging fewer than 12,000 per game, down 29% and 36%, respectively, from last year. The 76ers are filling the Wachovia Center to less than 60% of arena capacity; even the Hornets — with the worst attendance in the NBA — are filling a larger proportion of New Orleans Arena.
Three NBA teams, the 76ers, Hornets and Pacers, are playing to less than 70% capacity. Perhaps more ominously, eight NBA teams are playing to less than 80% capacity; by comparison, at the end of last season, only four teams could not fill their arenas to 80% capacity.
The NBA has set attendance records in each of the past three seasons.
On the positive side, the Portland Trailblazers and Boston Celtics are only two of several teams to see marked improvement in attendance. Despite losing number one draft pick Greg Oden for the season, the Trailblazers have seen their attendance rise 23% from last year. Meanwhile, the Celtics, off to a 17-2 start, have seen attendance climb 10% from the same point in ’06. The Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, Utah Jazz, Toronto Raptors and New York Knicks have also seen their attendance rise by at least 5%.
