TNT and NBA TV join ABC in drawing record audiences for NBA regular-season games during the condensed '11-12 campaign. TNT saw its best NBA audience in its 28 years of televising games. It is the second-straight season the net has set an all-time high, and fifth consecutive season of viewership growth. TNT aired the six most-watched NBA games on cable this season, including two of the five most-viewed NBA games in cable TV history. The season-opening Celtics-Knicks game on Christmas led the way with 5.9 million viewers. The net also saw double-digit percentage growth among males and adults 18-34. In its second season as a Nielsen-rated network, the record 337,000 viewers NBA TV drew on average was up 31% compared to the post-Christmas period last year. There was double-digit growth among all key adult and male demos. The net also saw viewership jump for its “Fan Night” games. This comes on the heels of ABC last week announcing its 3.3 rating and 5.4 million viewers marked its best figures since it acquired TV rights prior to the ’02-03 season. It also is the best for any broadcast net since NBC during the ’98-99 season, which was also shortened due to a labor stoppage. ESPN saw a mixed bag for its NBA audience. Following the net’s record-setting numbers last year, ESPN saw its rating jump slightly to a 1.3 final number, but viewership was relatively flat at 1.9 million viewers.
| NBA REGULAR-SEASON TV AUDIENCE* |
| NET | GMS | U.S. RAT. | % +/- | VIEWERS (000) | % +/- | GMS ('10-11) |
| ABC | 15 | 3.3 | 10.0% | 5,421 | 6.1% | 15 |
| TNT | 43 | 1.7 | 6.2% | 2,498 | 4.2% | 32 |
| ESPN | 71 | 1.3 | 8.3% | 1,863 | -1.3% | 47 |
| NBA TV | 96 | 0.2 | 0.0% | 337 | 30.6% | n/a |
| | | | | | | |
CHART NOTE: * = All figures for '10-11 season are for the post-Christmas period.
SPURS OF THE MOMENT: The Spurs once again led all teams with an 8.0 local rating on FS Southwest, which marked the second-best local number in the 25 years that the net has aired Spurs games. That number is down from a 10.2 local rating last year. The Nets ranked last during the club’s final season in New Jersey with a 0.4 local rating on YES Network. The Bulls ranked fourth overall among NBA teams with a 5.9 local rating on Comcast SportsNet Chicago, marking the highest average rating for Bulls’ games in the market since ’97-98, the last year of Michael Jordan's run with the team. The T’Wolves, Thunder and Knicks led all teams in percentage ratings gain this season, with each net seeing an increase of over 100%. The Suns, Rockets and Celtics saw the sharpest drops.
| NBA TEAM LOCAL RATINGS (TOP/BOTTOM) |
| RANK | TEAM | NET | LOCAL RATING |
| 1 | Spurs | FS Southwest | 8.0 |
| 2 | Heat | Sun Sports | 6.6 |
| 3 | Thunder | FS Oklahoma | 6.6 |
| 4 | Bulls | CSN Chicago | 5.9 |
| 5 | Lakers | FS West | 4.6 |
| 26 | Pistons | FS Detroit | 1.5 |
| 27 | Hawks | SportSouth | 1.4 |
| 28 | Wizards | CSN Mid-Atlantic | 0.9 |
| 29 | Bobcats | SportSouth | 0.8 |
| 30 | Nets | YES | 0.4 |
| NBA TEAM LOCAL RATING (PERCENTAGE GAINS) |
| RANK | TEAM | NET | % +/- |
| 1 | T'Wolves | FS North | 132.3% |
| 2 | Thunder | FS Oklahoma | 131.7% |
| 3 | Knicks | MSG | 118.4% |
| 4 | Clippers | FS Prime Ticket | 85.1% |
| 5 | 76ers | CSN Philadelphia | 65.8% |
| 26 | Bobcats | SportSouth | -24.1% |
| 27 | Wizards | CSN Mid-Atlantic | -30.2% |
| 28 | Celtics | CSN New England | -32.9% |
| 29 | Rockets | FS Houston | -33.2% |
| 30 | Suns | FS Arizona | -36.7% |
