On July 06, 2021 in Phoenix, Arizona, Chris Paul #3 of the Phoenix Suns brings the ball up court against the Milwaukee Bucks during the second half of Game One of the NBA Finals at Phoenix Suns Arena. Getty Images/Chris Coduto The National Basketball Association bounced back from a disastrous 2020 NBA Finals, with Game 1 of its championship series between the Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks generating more than 8 million people on ABC. The game drew an average of 8.5 million viewers, up 13% from Game 1 of the 2020 NBA Finals. That series, which featured the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat, was played last October due to the pandemic. The attendance for Game 1 of the 2020 World Cup was the lowest since 1994, when the O.J. Simpson car pursuit disrupted the broadcast. The Suns-Bucks game on July 6 drew 9.9 million viewers at 11 p.m. ET. According to the NBA, the first game was a success “In the Phoenix and Milwaukee markets, they also achieved 20-year viewership records. In Milwaukee, the broadcast received a 23.9 rating, the highest since 2001, while in Phoenix, it received a 23.7 rating, the most since 2000.” The Suns took a 118-105 lead in the 2021 series, setting up a crucial Game 2 on Thursday as the Bucks try to avoid a two-game deficit. Both franchises haven’t played in the Finals in decades, with the Bucks last competing in 1974 and the Suns in 1993. As the league seeks to mend its ties with China, international viewership may suffer. Despite the fact that the country is the NBA’s top market outside of the United States, games are still not shown on state-run CCTV following an incident involving Philadelphia 76ers executive Daryl Morey in 2019. Tencent, the NBA’s official media partner, is broadcasting the NBA Finals live in China. The NBA isn’t overly concerned about its low Finals ratings in the last two cycles, according to league sources. Last October, NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum told CNBC that the 2019-20 season’s viewership was a “total outlier” due to the pandemic and societal turmoil. The event is still running behind schedule this year, according to league officials, and July has the lowest PUT (people watching television) levels of any month of the year. NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced on Tuesday that the league will resume its regular season schedule next season, which means the Finals will be held in June as usual. The NBA Finals were last held in June of this year, with Game 1 of the series between the Golden State Warriors and the Toronto Raptors attracting 13.3 million viewers. After a tremendous postseason run that included three Game 7s, the NBA has released its latest viewing number. Game 7 between the Brooklyn Nets and the Milwaukee Bucks drew 6.9 million viewers, while the final game between the Atlanta Hawks and the Philadelphia 76ers drew 6.2 million. The NBA’s play-in game between LeBron James and Steph Curry, which drew 5.6 million viewers, also drew 5.6 million viewers./n
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