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Lakers-Warriors averaged 7.8M viewers, making it the most-watched conference semifinals series in 27 years

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James Foglio
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James Foglio Sports Editor

James is a Basketball Insiders contributor. He earned his bachelor's degree in English and Creative Writing from Southern New Hampshire University. James enjoys watching sports and helping gamblers win money.

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Sports Editor

Updated24 May 2023

Lakers-Warriors averaged 7.8M viewers, making it the most-watched Conference Semifinals series in 27 years

The Los Angeles Lakers-Golden State Warriors series averaged 7.8 million viewers across ABC, ESPN, and TNT, making it the most-watched conference semifinals series in 27 years.

Game 1 of the Lakers-Warriors series averaged 7.4 million viewers. It was the most-watched Game 1 of the conference semifinals in cable television history.

According to multiple NBA betting sites, the Lakers have third-shortest odds to win the championship. Check out which sportsbooks are showing greater odds for the Boston Celtics and Denver Nuggets.

Last Saturday night’s Game 3 matchup between the Lakers and Warriors averaged 8.3 million viewers and peaked at 9.7 million. This contest became the most-watched Game 3 of a conference semifinals series since 1999. 

Additionally, Game 4 drew 7.5 million viewers, making it the most-watched conference semifinals Game 4 on any network since 2012. This was also an 18% increase vs. 2022. It was a top-3 program among adults under 50, per Warner Bros. Discovery Sports U.S. Public Relations.

Lakers-Warriors Western Conference semifinals series averaged 7.8 million viewers, Game 3 peaked at 9.7 million viewers

Game 5 attracted 7.5 million fans, and it became the most-watched Game 5 of a conference semifinals series on any network in 11 years. It was the top program on television all day last Wednesday.

Last season’s Lakers-Warriors NBA Play-In game — aired exclusively on ESPN, drew an average audience of 5,618,000 viewers, peaking with 6,149,000 viewers from 12:30-1 a.m. ET. At the time, it was the most-watched NBA game on ESPN since the 2019 Western Conference Finals and was a 190% increase over the 2020 NBA Play-In on ABC.

In Los Angeles’ 124-116 win over Golden State on Mar. 5, this ABC matchup drew almost 4 million viewers, the largest non-Christmas regular season NBA audience on any network in four years.

Furthermore, in the Warriors’ 120-100 first-round win in Game 7 over the Sacramento Kings, this matchup averaged 9.8 million viewers on ABC, making it the most-watched NBA Playoffs first-round game in 24 years.

Since 2015, Stephen Curry has been featured in 32 out of 33 games with at least 13 million viewers. The nine-time All-Star has played in all 27 NBA games that have drawn over 14 million viewers as well.

Adding LeBron James and the Lakers into the mix with Curry is the perfect recipe for exceptional ratings.

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