OAKLAND, Calif. (Diya TV) — Game 7 between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors on Sunday has drawn the highest TV rating of any NBA Finals broadcast since Michael Jordan won his last championship.
The Cavaliers’ 93-89 nail-biting victory over the defending champion Warriors helped deliver the city of Cleveland its first professional sports championship of any kind in more than a half-century, and the viewership of the game averaged a 15.7 rating with nearly 30.8 million tuning in on ABC Sunday. ESPN said Monday those numbers are the best and highest since Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals, where Jordan and the Chicago Bulls won their sixth ring.
Must-see TV is familiar territory for Cavaliers star LeBron James — Game 7 between the San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat three years ago was the second most watched NBA Finals Game 7 ever, and the second most watched NBA game ever on ABC since the network began broadcasting the series in 2003. The most watched NBA game on ABC was previously the 2010 NBA Finals Game 7 between the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics — that pulled in 28.2 million viewers. With viewing numbers that high, it’s no surprise that betting on basketball is a hot topic, if you’d like to try your hand at making an extra buck or two, you may want to head over to betting.com.
In Northeast Ohio, nothing is given. Everything is earned. #OneForTheLand pic.twitter.com/thvzlbfYbp
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) June 20, 2016
Sunday’s game peaked in the closing moments — 44.5 million tuned in to watch the final minutes of the Cavaliers victory, including President Barack Obama, who delayed his exit from Air Force One to watch the result of the game.
The Cavaliers became the first team in NBA history to battle back from a 3-1 series deficit and emerge victorious in the NBA Finals.
Ratings represent the percentage of U.S. homes with televisions tuned to a program. The game earned a 46.3 rating in the Cleveland area. Additionally, 598,000 viewers streamed the game on the WatchESPN app, the company said.
