Overview
- The NBA said Tuesday the first round averaged 4.0 million viewers per game, the best since 1993, helped by six series that reached at least six games and three Game 7s.
- The 76ers’ 109–100 Game 7 win over the Celtics averaged 11 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, the most-watched first-round Game 7 ever and the biggest first-round game in 27 years.
- That broadcast followed a record Kentucky Derby on NBC with a preliminary 19.6 million viewers, giving the game an unusually large lead-in audience.
- Expanded broadcast placement and exclusive national windows boosted reach, with 20 first-round games on over-the-air TV and no local cable simulcasts for the first time.
- Independent counts vary because of new measurement methods, as Sports Media Watch estimated 10.99 million for the Game 7 using a Nielsen-plus-Adobe hybrid with a 12.6 million peak.