Warriors' Game 7's winning gains large numbers for the increase in the NBA ratings

The Golden State Warriors' Game 7 victory in the Houston Rockets on Sunday evening was the most watched NBA playoff game of the first round since 2009.

The game achieved an average of 6.63 million viewers in TNT and Trutv, the highest brand for a game in the first round since game 6 between the Chicago Bulls and Boston Celtics was an average of 6.99 million viewers in TNT 16 years ago.

It is worth noting that Nielsen only began to follow the advertisement outside of the house in his numbers in 2020.

The win of the Warriors from 103-89 on Sunday evening was also the third most common game of the entire first round, which was only exceeded by ABC: game 4 between the Los Angeles Lakers and Minnesota Timbewolves (7.35 million) and Boston's game 1 against Orlando Magic on Easter (6.69 million).

The game on Sunday evening also clearly put the other game 7 of the weekend in the shade, with the simple victory of the Denver Nuggets over the Los Angeles Clipper on Saturday evening at TNT and TrutV achieved an average of 4.21 million viewers on TNT and Trutv.

The entire first round of the 2025 playoffs was an average of 3.27 million viewers in ABC, ESPN, TNT and NBA TV. This rose by 6 percent compared to the previous year and was helped by the 4.4 million average spectators who set up eight games on the Easter weekend on the opening slate.

In six games, ABC achieved an average of 5.56 million viewers, which rose by 14 percent the previous year, while ESPN platforms, including ABC and ESPN, rose an average of 4.46 million in 12 games and also 14 percent. The 25 playoff games in the first round of TNT attracted an average of 3.3 million viewers, which corresponds to an increase of 3 percent compared to 2024.

Indiana opened the second round of the playoffs on Sunday with a win in Cleveland, which moved 4.38 million to TNT.

The seventh warriors open their second round against the sixth Timberwolves on Tuesday evening. While the series checks a few lower seeds, it also contains Golden State against a Minnesota team, which was led by the young superstar Anthony Edwards, who, according to Front Office Sports, was the most watched player in NBA Social Media in the first round.

– Field Level Media