Unfortunately, TV ratings fell slightly for Game 1 of NBA Finals

The last time the Miami Heat played for the championship, it was the lowest-watched NBA Finals series ever and it even featured the big-named Los Angeles Lakers.

So it comes as no surprise that the Heat taking on the Denver Nuggets, who are making their NBA Finals debut, would lead to some low TV ratings.

Game 1 of the 2023 NBA Finals drew a 2.21 rating in the key 18-49-year-old demographic. In total, the series opener averaged 7.62 million viewers according to preliminary overnight ratings, down from 11.4 million viewers for Game 1 of Boston against Golden State in the NBA Finals last year, which were the final numbers.

Across the board, the NBA has seen good TV ratings in these NBA playoffs. And it’s understandable that given market size and team history numbers would be down a bit for Miami against Denver when compared to the historic Celtics and dynasty building Warriors.

Nuggets fans won’t care how uninteresting or compelling the team may or may not be and what that leads to in terms of TV eyeballs. Denver is looking for its first-ever basketball championship and the Mile High City is watching its best-ever team. If the rest of the world wants to besmirch the good name of Nikola Jokic instead of appreciating his team’s brilliance, so be it.

While there is some truth to the fact Game 1 wasn’t the most interesting contest as Denver sped out to a 24-point lead and held on for a win, the series has a few of the NBA’s elite players and coaches. The Nuggets lead the series 1-0 and you can catch all the action on ABC. Game 2 is Sunday night and asks the question, can the Heat build off a solid four-quarter and answer the Nuggets bell or will the Nuggets run out to a 2-0 series lead for the third matchup in a row?

The Heat hosts Games 3 and 4 next week. Miami has lost three of their last four games while Denver has won seven-straight postseason games and is yet to lose at home in these playoffs.

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