NBA All-Star Game Ratings Up By Eight Percent From Last Year

The new NBA All-Star Game format saw increased television ratings from last year

The 2020 NBA All-Star Game on TNT averaged 7.3 million viewers, an eight percent bump from last year. 

The format for this year's All-Star Game was changed, with Team LeBron and Team Giannis competing to win money for their respective charities in each of the four quarters. In the fourth quarter, the game clock was turned off and there was a target score of 159 points, based on the leading team's score plus 24 points. 

Team LeBron won, 159-157, in an exciting finish that came down to the final possession. About 8 million viewers were tuned in for the end of the game, which saw players actually playing defense and competing hard. 

James posted a photo to Instagram on Monday of him facing off against Antetokounmpo as captivated fans stood, many of them filming the moment on their cell phones. 

“The Man In The 🏟” Are You Not Entertained?! 👑.,'" James wrote, adding the following hashtags, #ThekidfromAKRON🤴🏾 #BeyondThankfulandBlessed #JamesGang👑.

Before the game began, there were several tributes to Kobe Bryant, who died Jan. 26 in a helicopter crash along with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven other people. 

The pregame show included Magic Johnson talking about Bryant, Common using spoken-word rhymes to honor Bryant and Jennifer Hudson performing "For All We Know." That portion of the coverage averaged 6.3 million viewers, a 19 percent increase from last year. 

Over the entire All-Star weekend, there was a 15 percent increase in viewers on TNT.