• Loading stock data...
Saturday, August 2, 2025
Tuned In returns to NYC on September 16. Hear from the biggest names in sports media. Click here to get your spot

Celtics-Lakers Draws Record Ratings, NBA Nearly Even With Last Year

The Celtics and Lakers drew 4.61 million viewers Saturday on ABC, the league’s most-watched non-Christmas regular-season game since 2018.

Mar 8, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) controls the ball against Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) during the fourth quarter at the TD Garden.
Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images

After months of chatter on the NBA’s declining viewership, the league’s oldest rivalry has pushed its ratings as close as they have been to last year’s mark.

The Celtics and Lakers game drew 4.61 million viewers and peaked at 5.34 million Saturday on ABC, the most-watched non-Christmas regular-season NBA game since 2018, the league announced Tuesday. The game even outdrew two of this season’s Christmas Day games—the only regular-season game to achieve that feat this year.

Before Saturday, the most-watched non-Christmas game this year was a Jan. 25 matchup between the Lakers and Warriors on ABC that drew 3.05 million viewers.

The NBA is now averaging 1.57 million viewers for its nationally televised games, down 2% from last year. It’s a stark improvement over the double-digit declines the league experienced through the first two months of the year. The NBA had an 18% viewership decline before Christmas, when the five-game slate simulcast on ABC and ESPN cut the dip to 4%

Saturday’s game had the recipe for a top-tier draw. The Celtics and Lakers are the league’s two winningest franchises, and both teams are top three seeds in their respective conferences and championship contenders. 

Most of the teams’ stars were also available for the game. LeBron James and Luka Dončić played for Los Angeles—though James went down with an injury in the fourth quarter—and both are considered top viewership draws, especially after the shocking trade that sent Dončić to the Lakers last month. Boston’s core that won the 2024 championship was mostly available, with only Kristaps Porziņģis missing due to illness. 

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

opinion

ESPN-NFL Deal Still Contends With a Wild Card: Trump’s Approval

Negotiations between the NFL and Disney have been ongoing for four years
Coco Gauff at New York Liberty

How the New York Liberty Became the Hottest Ticket in Town

Once banished to the burbs, the Libs are now Brooklyn’s marquee attraction.
Leo Messi
exclusive

MLS Commissioner Don Garber Defends Messi Suspension

Messi was punished for skipping the MLS All-Star Game.

Commanders Seal Stadium Deal As D.C. Approves $1.1B in Funding

The NFL team’s return to its prior home receives key political support.

Featured Today

Las Vegas sign

College Sports Embracing Vegas After Years of Cold Shoulder

The Big Ten became the latest newcomer to Sin City.
2000, Jupiter, FL, USA; FILE PHOTO; Montreal Expos pitcher Hideki Irabu in action on the mound against the New York Mets at Roger Dean Stadium during Spring Training
July 28, 2025

Dead Sports Franchises Are Alive and Well on Twitter

The Expos, Sonics, and Whalers have active social media accounts.
Limited Hype
July 27, 2025

Sneaker Reselling Was Once Easy Money. Success Is Now Complicated

Vendors need to evolve what they’re selling and how they do it.
HAPPY GILMORE 2. BTS - (L to R) Adam Sandler as Happy Gilmore and Rory McIlroy as himself on the set of Happy Gilmore2.
July 26, 2025

‘Cool As Hell’: How ‘Happy Gilmore 2’ Hooked Golf’s Top Stars

The process was “cool as hell,” Adam Sandler tells FOS.
Jul 15, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) reacts to the crowd as they take on the Connecticut Sun in the first quarter at TD Garden.

WNBA Viewership Up Across All Networks Compared to 2024

Non-Fever games are up 37% compared to the full 2024 season.
Jul 27, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Sky guard Kia Nurse (11) drives to the basket against Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham (8) during the second half at United Center.
July 29, 2025

Fever-Sky Draws 1.5M Viewers Despite Clark, Reese Absences

Clark and Reese both missed the game due to injury.
NASCAR Cup Series driver Bubba Wallace (23) celebrates winning Sunday, July 27, 2025, the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
July 30, 2025

Amazon, TNT Post Near-Identical NASCAR Ratings in Debut Season

The cable channel is a new media-rights partner this season.
Sponsored

Game On: Portfolio Players Stories, Brought to You by E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

Dealmaker Jeffrey Kaplan maps the evolution of sports as an asset class
July 29, 2025

WBD Restructuring Shows What’s Old Is New Again

WBD will become Warner Bros. and Discovery Global as two separate entities.
July 24, 2025

CBS Sports to Get New Owner As Skydance Merger Clears FCC Hurdle

The long-awaited, but highly debated, merger gains regulatory approval.
Dec 7, 2024; New York, New York, USA; A general view of Times Square during the MLS Cup Times Square Watch Party prior to the game between the LA Galaxy and the New York Red Bulls.
July 24, 2025

MLS Reveals Apple TV Streaming Numbers, Raising Questions

The league gives a rare glimpse inside the high-profile streaming pact.
A Peacock sideline reporter holds a microphone with the NBC Peacock logo during Michigan State's football game against Washington on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing.
July 24, 2025

‘Unusual’: NBCU’s Surprise Interest in a New Cable Sports Network

Its previous channel NBCSN was shuttered less than four years ago.