Overview
- San Antonio’s win over Oklahoma City averaged 6.71 million viewers on ESPN/ABC, the most-watched second game on Christmas since 2017.
- Cleveland–New York at noon drew 6.37 million across ABC/ESPN plus the “Dunk the Halls” simulcast, setting a record for the holiday’s early window and peaking at 8.2 million.
- Dallas–Golden State at 5 p.m. averaged 6.11 million, the timeslot’s best since 2019 and up 16% from last year’s comparable matchup.
- The Lakers’ primetime loss to Houston averaged 5.35 million, down 32% from last year’s non-NFL-competing Lakers–Warriors game, while the late Nuggets–Timberwolves nightcap drew 3.61 million for the second-best audience ever in that window.
- Across ABC and ESPN, the five-game slate averaged 5.53 million viewers, up 4% year over year, with total reach up 45% to 47.19 million as Nielsen’s expanded out-of-home and Big Data methodology complicates direct comparisons.