NBA Viewership For Opening Night, Largest in 15 Years

Opening night of the 2025-26 NBA season saw a significant increase in viewership, with the doubleheader on October 21 averaging 5.6 million viewers on NBC and Peacock. This marks the most-watched October opening night in 15 years and an 87% increase over the 2024 tip-off doubleheader. 

NBA Opening Week 2025-26 viewership highlights

Event	Network(s)	Average Viewers (millions)	Year-over-Year Increase	Notes
Opening Night Doubleheader (Oct 21)	NBC, Peacock	5.61	+87%	Most-watched October opening night in 15 years. Includes Rockets-Thunder and Warriors-Lakers.
Early Game (Oct 21)	NBC, Peacock	5.85	N/A	Most-watched early game since 2010. Viewership for Rockets-Thunder peaked at 7.1 million in double-overtime.
Late Game (Oct 21)	NBC, Peacock	5.11	N/A	Warriors-Lakers aired after the completion of the early game.
ESPN Opening Week (Oct 22-23)	ESPN	2.2	N/A	Includes Cavaliers-Knicks, Spurs-Mavericks, Thunder-Pacers, and Warriors-Nuggets. Second-highest opening week for ESPN since 2014.
Opening Week Total Viewers (US)	NBC/Peacock, ESPN, Prime Video	~37	+100%	Highest total opening week viewership in 15 years.

Factors influencing the surge in viewership

• Return to Network Television: The NBA's return to NBC for the first time since 2002 brought a broadcast television audience back to the opening night games, providing more exposure than in previous years.

• Compelling Matchups and Storylines: The season began with attractive games featuring the defending champions (Thunder), marquee teams (Warriors, Lakers), and prominent players like Luka Donic, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant.

• Multi-Platform Access: The new media rights deal expands access to streaming services like Peacock and Amazon Prime Video, complementing the traditional broadcast and cable options.

..... and Michael Jordan helped