The first round of the NBA Playoffs this year saw a sharp viewership drop, as fewer series went to a Game 7 and three series saw sweeps. The average audience for 41 games across ABC, TNT, ESPN, ESPN2 and NBA TV was 2.97 million viewers, down 14% from 3.47 million viewers for 50 games last year. There were a record five Game 7s last year, including two on ABC. There were no Game 7s on ABC this season, and still, viewership on the broadcast net was down only 1% (5.14 vs 5.17 million viewers). On ESPN, eight first-round games averaged 2.63 million viewers, down 24% from last year’s nine games. Meanwhile, TNT averaged 3.26 million viewers, down 19% from 4.01 million last year. While viewership on the main cable partners was down, NBA games won primetime on cable on 10 of the 15 nights they aired. NBA TV averaged 390,000 viewers for its four games, down 46% from a record-setting 720,000 viewers for seven games in the first round last season.
DIGITAL/SOCIAL: The NBA saw a 108% year-over-year increase in combined social media impressions across Facebook/Twitter/Instagram. There also was a 36% increase in videos viewed on mobile devices. TNT’s NBA Playoffs coverage alone won the night four times in the TV-based Twitter conversation rankings compiled by Nielsen Social Guide. For games aired on WatchESPN, the OTT service saw a 25% increase in total minutes consumed and a 71% increase in average-minute audience compared to games shown in '14.
