NBA Ratings Continue to Drop, Former Players and Fans Give Eye-Opening Reasons Why

NBA ratings have continued to drop. Multiple fans and former league members weighed in on why.

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The NBA is still one of the more popular sporting leagues around but they have started to see a decrease in ratings over the years. Even this season, the NBA has seen viewership drop on multiple platforms.

Viewership on ESPN has been down 28 percent through Nov. 21, according to Front Office Sports. Viewership on TNT has also been down three percent until the highly-anticipated showdown between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics took place.

The league has pushed back on this notion, with NBA commissioner Adam Silver blaming the 2024 Presidential Election, World Series, and other external events on the decline.

"I think we're just looking at a couple weeks of ratings," Silver told Front Office Sports. "There's always some unique things. This year we were up against the World Series, Dodgers-Yankees, two very attractive teams, they brought in a big audience. You had a presidential election which was commanding an enormous amount of attention. So I don't think it has anything whatsoever to do with the style of play on the floor."

However, even with these events, the NBA may have a slight problem on their hands. Multiple fans and former players have weighed in on the exact reason for the ratings decline.

Former NBA coach George Karl gave his thoughts, saying that the league is unwatchable at this point.

"Feelings on Trump aside, the Election last week was a statement on change," he posted. "The League I love and helped build, the NBA, needs to acknowledge the same. Fans tell me daily the games are unwatchable. The entertainment has surpassed the sport. The NBA should listen and respond."

Former star center Shaquille O'Neal also weighed in on the ratings drop, citing play style issues. Fans have also made their feelings known, giving some eye-opening responses. This ranges from the product on the court to star players' load management, even citing politics from the league.

Some fans have even blamed the rise in 3-point shooting as a detriment to the overall game performance.

Has to do with one thing, the product. The game now does not resemble what real @NBA hoop was . Rules , can't defend paint, up tp 5 steps allowed, no hand checking, defense is gone as are basic fundamentals. 3 point shooting contest nightly which means more failure that fans… https://t.co/RAD2Y0kSsn

— Wes C (@WesClements22) November 22, 2024

The most unavailable star players have ever been. Every game is missing someone important. https://t.co/Wuv7LGcmoB

— Kyron Mainer (@crownroyalpapi_) November 20, 2024

This sums up the problems of the NBA 😬 and you wonder why ratings are low pic.twitter.com/2RZvpWfIFQ

— It girl (@stilldebs) November 22, 2024

Them: Why are NBA ratings down?

Me: The coverage is a joke. pic.twitter.com/uVyk4po6kl

— Laker Central (@LakerCentral365) November 21, 2024

Some have even advocated for the league to push the season back and not go up against viewership giants like the NFL or college football.

If I were the NBA I would push the season back from October-June to December-August. Competing with college and pro football for two months+ seems like a ratings mess. And in the summer nothing is on TV.

— John Wilson, MBA, MS (@JohnWilson) November 19, 2024

In recent years, the NBA has seen the regular season almost become meaningless due to stars sitting out of games or games lacking intensity. The league tried to combat this by introducing the NBA Cup, which to their credit has worked out decently.

But there are still clear issues that need to be addressed by the league before it's too late.

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