• Loading stock data...
Saturday, August 9, 2025
Tuned In returns to NYC on September 16. Hear from the biggest names in sports media. Click here to get your spot

Adam Silver Defends NBA Product Amid Sluggish Ratings

The NBA commissioner said the first few weeks of the season saw a much-watched World Series matchup and a heated election finale.

Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

Shaquille O’Neal recently blamed too much three-point shooting for the NBA’s poor ratings so far this season. On The Big Podcast with Shaq, the Hall of Fame center and TNT analyst recently said the Warriors and star player Steph Curry are among those who have contributed to the monotony. 

“We’re looking at the same thing,” O’Neal said. “Everybody is running the same plays. And [the Warriors] messed it up. I don’t mind Golden State back in the day shooting threes, but every team isn’t a three-point shooter. So why [does] everybody have the same strategy? I think it makes the game boring.”

NBA commissioner Adam Silver has a different point of view. “I don’t think it has anything to do with the three-point shot,” Silver said in an interview with Cheddar that came out Friday. The ratings dip can be attributed to the particulars of the calendar and the fierce competition for viewers’ attention, he said. Viewership for NBA games has dropped double digits through the opening weeks of the regular season, according to Sports Media Watch.

“I think we’re just looking at a couple weeks of ratings,” Silver said. “There’s always some unique things. This year we were up against the World Series, Dodgers-Yankees, two very attractive teams, they brought in a big audience. You had a presidential election which was commanding an enormous amount of attention. So I don’t think it has anything whatsoever to do with the style of play on the floor.”

Silver said the NBA’s social media traffic is at an all-time high, and the league boasts more followers across its platforms than the NHL and MLB combined. (The official NBA X/Twitter account has 47.4 million followers and 22.9 million followers on TikTok; MLB has 12 million followers on X and 7.8 million on TikTok, for comparison.) When asked about the NBA’s social media standing compared to its peers, Silver said he doesn’t look at it that way. 

“We compare ourselves to, frankly, the biggest brands in the world,” Silver said. “Two years ago, we were one of the top five search terms on Google globally—the NBA, its teams, its players. I feel it’s almost too limiting to compare us to another sports league.” 

Silver was also enthusiastic about the league’s upcoming streaming partnership with Amazon, which is part of the NBA’s new media-rights deal that starts next season. He called Amazon “one of the best consumer-facing companies in the world,” and he said the league now has the ability to cater more to its consumers than ever before as streaming grows and evolves. 

“If they begin to innovate and say now we can customize telecasts for people who are hardcore fans that can hear one feed, for people who are just learning the game, for people who want more of a comical take on the game such as a ManningCast,” Silver said, “there’s unlimited opportunities there. People who want to shop while they’re watching, people who want some sort of gamification, people who want to bet, frankly, where it’s legal. All of those things become possible to create much more individual personalized experiences.”

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

WNBA Struggling to Prevent Repeat Dildo Incidents

The league appears to have no answers to the copycats plaguing games.
NC State

NC State ‘Cardiac Pack’ Team Loses NCAA Suit for NIL Back Pay

The 1983 team was among college basketball’s greatest Cinderella stories. 
WNBA

Crypto Group Says It’s Behind WNBA Dildo Epidemic

The group backs a memecoin that launched last week.

Featured Today

Dec 14, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; President Donald Trump wave during the second quarter of the game between the Navy Midshipmen and the Army Black Knights at Lincoln Financial Field

‘Political Gold’: Trump Putting His Stamp on College Sports 

Trump has embraced executive action on hot-button college sports issues.
August 3, 2025

Inked Under Anesthesia: Athletes Getting $50,000 Tattoos

High-end studios, elite artist teams, and hours under anesthesia.
Coco Gauff at New York Liberty
August 2, 2025

How the New York Liberty Became the Hottest Ticket in Town

Once banished to the burbs, the Libs are now Brooklyn’s marquee attraction.
Las Vegas sign
July 29, 2025

College Sports Embracing Vegas After Years of Cold Shoulder

The Big Ten became the latest newcomer to Sin City.
Apr 6, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; Marc Leishman (center) celebrates with his teammates after winning the final round of the LIV Golf Miami golf tournament at Trump National Doral.
August 7, 2025

Trump Golf Courses Secure 2026 Stops on LIV, PGA

For the fifth consecutive year, LIV golf returns to a Trump course.
August 7, 2025

LAFC’s Record Son Deal Brings Global Buzz and Local Pride

Los Angeles has the largest Korean community in the country.
Sponsored

Hottest Matchups Following NFL Schedule Release

The NFL released the 2025 regular-season schedule, and anticipation is already building in the ticket marketplace with four months to go.
August 7, 2025

More Dildo Throwing During WNBA Games Leads to Second Arrest

The 18-year-old threw a dildo that hit another fan and his young niece.
August 7, 2025

Smelling Salts Not Banned in the NFL, but Teams Can’t Hand Them..

Teams are banned from supplying smelling salts to their players.
August 6, 2025

US Open Breaks Prize Money Record, Still Leads All Grand Slams

The total 2025 US Open prize money is $85 million.
Diana Taurasi
August 6, 2025

Diana Taurasi Warns Against WNBA Work Stoppage 

Taurasi saw several key negotiations in her legendary career.