Projecting 2025 Thunder-Pacers TV Ratings: NBA Finals Viewership Trends
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The Oklahoma City Thunder is in the NBA Finals for the first time in 13 years and the Indiana Pacers are there for the first time in 25 years.
Bookies.com, where you’ll find NBA betting tips for OKC-Indiana, looked at TV market size rankings and NBA Finals viewership numbers over the past 25 years to compile this list of the most (and least) watched league final series this century. We then project numbers for the 2025 NBA Finals.
NBA Finals Viewership and Market Size
| Year (NBA Finals result) | Avg. Viewers | Avg. Market Size |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 (Golden State over Cleveland) | 20.38 million | 14.5 |
| 2016 (Cleveland over Golden State) | 20.28 million | 14.5 |
| 2015 (Golden State over Cleveland) | 19.94 million | 14.5 |
| 2021 (L.A. Lakers over Philadelphia) | 19.00 million | 3.5 |
| 2010 (L.A. Lakers over Boston) | 18.14 million | 5.5 |
| 2004 (Detroit over L.A. Lakers) | 17.94 million | 8 |
| 2018 (Golden State over Cleveland) | 17.56 million | 14.5 |
| 2013 (Miami over San Antonio) | 17.47 million | 24.5 |
| 2000 (L.A. Lakers over Indiana) | 17.40 million | 9 |
| 2011 (Dallas over Miami) | 17.39 million | 11 |
| 2012 (Miami over Oklahoma City) | 16.88 million | 32.5 |
| 2002 (LA Lakers over New Jersey) | 15.68 million | 1.5 |
| 2014 (San Antonio over Miami) | 15.54 million | 24.5 |
| 2019 (Toronto over Golden State) | 15.14 million | 5.5* |
| 2008 (Boston over L.A. Lakers) | 14.94 million | 5.5 |
| 2009 (L.A. Lakers over Orlando) | 14.35 million | 28.5 |
| 2006 (Miami over Dallas) | 12.97 million | 11 |
| 2005 (San Antonio over Detroit) | 12.54 million | 22.5 |
| 2022 (Golden State over Boston) | 12.40 million | 9.5 |
| 2025 (Oklahoma City vs. Indiana) | 12.08 million@ | 31.5 |
| 2023 (Denver over Miami) | 11.64 million | 17.5 |
| 2024 (Boston over Dallas) | 11.31 million | 6.5 |
| 2021 (Milwaukee over Phoenix) | 9.91 million | 25 |
| 2003 (San Antonio over New Jersey) | 9.86 million | 16 |
| 2007 (San Antonio over Cleveland) | 9.29 million | 25 |
| 2020 (L.A. Lakers over Miami) | 7.45 million | 10 |
*Value for Toronto is 1 because it’s the biggest TV market in Canada.
@Projected viewership for 2025 NBA Finals.
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Projected viewership for 2025 NBA Finals
Bookies.com has sports betting app reviews as well as NBA analysis. These numbers are listed by the highest average viewership throughout the series, regardless of the number of games, according to Nielsen ratings. Market size data comes from their list of top 210 Designated Market Areas (DMAs) as of 2024-25 Nielsen rankings.
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How Many Will Watch 2025 NBA Finals?
It’s worth noting that star power reigns supreme when it comes to viewership for the NBA Finals (and it helps boost sports betting interest too).
The 10 most viewed NBA Finals series since 2000 almost all have a common thread, regardless of whether the cities involved are large or smaller: Players such as LeBron James, Steph Curry, Kobe Bryant, and Shaquille O’Neal have led people to watch.
Six of the seven least-watched series have come since 2019 (including the 2020 COVID-19 bubble series between the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat).
Given that the past five non-COVID NBA Finals have combined to draw 60.4 million in average TV viewership (12.08 million per year), we project that the 2025 series between the Thunder and Pacers will hit that number next month. Keep track of NBA odds throughout the series at Bookies.com.
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If the 2025 NBA Finals average 12.08 million viewers over the course of the series, it would represent a 6.8% year-over-year improvement from the 2024 final between the Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks. That one averaged 11.31 million viewers, ranking 21st out of 25 series since the dawn of the 21st century. It’s also worth noting that the increased popularity of streaming has affected TV numbers.
An average viewership of just over 12 million per game for Pacers vs. Thunder would rank 20th out of 26 NBA Finals since 2000. But it would rank well ahead of 2021 (9.91 million viewers), 2023 (11.64 million viewers), and 2024 (11.31 million viewers) and just behind the 12.40 million average viewership figure for the 2022 series between the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors.
Will league Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Thunder and rising Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton help make up for the absence of proven TV draws such as LeBron and Curry in this year’s NBA Finals? Either way, check out our NBA picks to dig into Bookies.com expert analysis.
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