Sports

Replay Of The Masters Beats NBA Playoff Game In TV Ratings

(Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

David Hookstead Sports And Entertainment Editor
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NBA television ratings are in big trouble.

How big of trouble? Well, more people watched a replay of the final round of The Masters than an NBA playoff game between the Blazers and Thunder.

According to Sports Media Watch Tuesday, 4.5 million people watched The Masters replay Sunday on CBS of Tiger Woods winning, and only 3.9 million people watched the NBA game on ABC, which is a 32% decline from last year. (RELATED: Tiger Woods’ Wins 15th Major At The Masters)

The same report claimed that ratings for a playoff game between the Celtics and Pacers on TNT during The Masters were down 40%.

The NBA is in serious trouble. The only game that did really well was the Warriors vs. Clippers, which got the most eyeballs on it for an opening day playoff game since 2002.

Other than that, the report makes it look like the whole slate was complete trash.

I’m not sure why the NBA has such awful ratings. Having a replay of The Masters crush a live NBA game is embarrassing.

There’s no other way to spin it. I highly doubt a nationally broadcast NFL game would ever get beat by a replay of anything.

I could say the exact same for college football on national television. But the NBA got crushed. Got absolutely crushed. It’s not like the NBA is bad basketball. It’s the best players on the talent, but perhaps some people are turned away because of the perception that it’s a diva league, which it is.

For anybody who doesn’t believe me, I suggest you go research the past season the Lakers just had.

I don’t know what the fix is here, but these numbers can’t make anybody in NBA leadership happy at all. That much I can absolutely guarantee you.

For what it’s worth, the NBA isn’t even hanging with March Madness numbers right now. Duke’s game against UCF got 16 million viewers. Right now, that looks like a pipe dream for the NBA.

What a sad state of affairs for the league.