Declawed: Bobcats Last Among All NBA Teams In Local TV Ratings

The Bobcats are "last in the [NBA] in local TV ratings" with a 0.425 average HH rating in Charlotte, a drop of 65% from last year's number for the same time period, according to Roger van der Horst (Raleigh NEWS & OBSERVER, 11/26). The Bobcats in April inked an arena naming rights deal with Time Warner Cable that moved the team's games from Time Warner's News 14 to FS Carolinas and SportSouth, and Van der Horst in his blog asked, "Did Fox Sports Carolinas and Time Warner Cable bet on the wrong horse?" The Bobcats are "doing no better in Charlotte than hockey's Carolina Hurricanes, even though the Canes are based in Raleigh." That is despite the fact the Bobcats have several ties to local colleges, including Univ. of North Carolina alums G Raymond Felton, F Sean May, coach Larry Brown and Managing Member of Basketball Operations Michael Jordan (NEWSOBSERVER.com, 11/25). Below are the top five and bottom five NBA local market ratings to date (THE DAILY).