NBA Finals Hit Most Watched Game Ever On ABC

[RockaFowler]

I am in TV Research, so this was right up my alley. Congrats to the ABC stations across the country. The Cleveland Station WEWS averaged 47.1/69 - 69% of Cleveland was watching that game last night. The Post game saw 81% of Cleveland watching!!! (Full disclosure - this is my sister station, so this helps my company a lot!) The ABC station in West Palm Beach averaged 17.9/28. 40% of this area was watching the post-game!

http://deadline.com/2016/06/lebron-james-nba-finals-ratings-game-7-cleveland-cavaliers-golden-state-warriors-abc-1201775472/

With the Lebron James led team’s 100th playoff win, the 8 – 10:40 PM b-ball battle in the Bay Area drew 30.8 million total viewers with a 11.2 rating among adults 18-49. That’s up 17% from the 26.2 million that the last NBA Finals Game 7 scored back in 2013 when the Lebron James led Miami Heat beat the San Antonio Spurs. Last night’s game is the most watched telecast on TV this year after the Super Bowl and the Academy Awards.

That game three-years ago was the second most watched NBA Finals Game 7 ever and the second most watched NBA game ever on ABC since the net started showing the league in 2003. The most watch NBA game the Disney-owned was the 2010 Game 7 between the winning L.A. Lakers and the Boston Celtics – that pulled in 28.2 million viewers. Peaking at a huge 44.5 million in the final minutes, last night’s tense game was the most watched NBA Finals winning game on any net since since 1998.

[Auggie]

1. WEWS ...

station call letters from my long ago past. Channel 5 in Cleveland, I think.

81% postgame number is huge.

[RockaFowler]

2. That is HUGE

They are doing cartwheels over there!!

[bluedigger]

3. It was a dramatic series.

It doesn't surprise me that the final game developed a lot of interest. You had the two faces of the NBA matched up as well, in Steph and Lebron. I even watched the last quarter! (I don't have tv and watch online) It was good for the NBA, too. Upsets always promote interest. Can't wait for the draft. Go Celtics!