NBA Finals ratings: Pacers-Thunder thriller posts worst Game 1 numbers since league's COVID-19 downturn
Game 1 of the 2025 NBA Finals averaged a 4.7 rating and 8.91 million viewers on ABC, making it the least-watched Game 1 of the Nielsen meter era (since 1988) outside of the league's COVID-19-fueled ratings nadir in 2020 and 2021, according to Sports Media Watch.
The concerns about the small-market NBA Finals didn't prevent the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder from delivering a classic in Game 1. They do, however, seem to have impacted ratings as expected.
Those numbers are an 18% ratings decline and 19% viewership decline from last year's NBA Finals opener in which the Boston Celtics faced the Dallas Mavericks. The decline would have been worse had Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers not launched a furious comeback in the final minutes to stun the Thunder.
Game 2 wasn't any better, either. The Thunder's blowout win on Sunday drew near-identical numbers to the opening game of the series. It averaged 8.76 million viewers on ABC, which made it the least-watched Game 2 since 2007, excluding the COVID-19 bubble in 2020.
Those numbers seemingly vindicate what many have said about a clash between teams from the 25th and 47th largest markets in the Nielsen rankings, with Oklahoma City's mayor bristling at those concerns ahead of the game.
