Suns-Bucks NBA Finals series viewership increases by 50% from 2020
Jul 21, 2021, 8:40 PM
People watch television coverage of the Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns playing in Game 6 of the NBA basketball finals, Tuesday, July 20, 2021, in Milwaukee. The Bucks won the championship. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)
(AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)
Concerns that the NBA Finals viewership would be lowered because of a matchup between two small market teams were put to rest on Tuesday.
Numbers released by the NBA showed that Game 6 of NBA Finals between the Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks was watched by an average of 12.52 million viewers, peaking with 16.4 million between 8:30 p.m. and 8:44 p.m.
The average number of 12.52 million was up by 50% compared to Game 6 between the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat in 2020.
In Phoenix, ratings were the highest they had been in the last 25 years coming in at 25.9.
RELATED STORIES
Overall, viewership for the NBA Finals series was up by 32% and averaged 9.91 million viewers.
However, the average makes it the fourth-lowest since 1997.
The numbers were also down 34.5% compared to two years ago, when the Toronto-Golden State series averaged 15.14 million.
The final series was a reflection of the overall performance of the NBA Playoffs.
Compared to the 2020 playoffs, viewership was up by 35% and averaged 4.25 million viewers on ABC, ESPN and TNT.
The percentage of households that tuned in to the NBA playoffs was its highest since 2002 at 7.1%
