NBA Finals Game 1 Averages 17 Million Viewers, Highest Since 2018 but Still Below Many Prior Peaks

Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks averaged nearly 17 million viewers on Wednesday night. The figure marked a 90 percent increase from last season's opening game and was the highest for any Finals Game 1 since 2018. m.

EDT during the fourth quarter of New York's 105-95 win. The same game was the most-watched Finals contest on ABC and the most-watched Finals game since Game 6 of the 2019 series. 2 million viewers.

The article noted that the matchup featured Victor Wembanyama and Jalen Brunson and drew comparisons to the 2018 series between LeBron James and Stephen Curry. The star power of Victor Wembanyama and Jalen Brunson helped this year's NBA Finals get off to a huge start in terms of viewership, the likes of which hadn't been seen since the last finals matchup between LeBron James and Stephen Curry eight years ago.