If the NBA were a player and its media partners were its coaches, the message to the league would be simple: You are underperforming after signing your big new contract.
A month into the season, the NBA’s ratings are down 28% on ESPN through Nov. 21. Meanwhile, the ratings for its games on TNT are flat at 1.8 million viewers per game, while ESPN is slightly behind at 1.77 million viewers per game. This comes after every major studio fell over itself vying for the rights to air NBA games this year, resulting in a $76 billion total deal.
What’s behind the league’s popularity decline? While it is tough blame any one factor, analysts say the NBA has too many regular-season games and lacks continuity, with players changing teams more frequently and teams changing uniform designs more often, which has confused and turned off some fans.