Commissioner Adam Silver summarizes the 2024-25 season culminating in a Finals matchup of OKC and Indiana.
OKLAHOMA CITY – Given the Finals matchup of teams from two or the league’s smaller markets, it’s been inevitable that NBA commissioner Adam Silver would get asked about that – in media exchanges or even by fans on the street – in the days leading up to this championship series.
Silver’s position essentially is that size does not matter.
Not like it used to, anyway, in the NBA’s formative years. And not now as technology has shrunk the world even as the league has grown globally.
“It seems a little unusual how much discussion there is around ratings in this league,” Silver said Thursday in his annual news conference about an hour before Game 1 of the Finals tipped off.
“Even for me sort of walking on the street, fans coming up to me, it frustrates me that the first thing they say is, how are the ratings? What are the ratings going to be? As opposed to, wow, you have two incredible conference finals, what a great playoff series you’ve had.”
The NBA made headlines last summer when it signed new media deals worth a record $76 billion. The contracts kick in next season. While the league has an interest in the success of its broadcast partners, and TV ratings are one measure of the NBA’s overall financial health, lower or higher viewership numbers fall first on the outlets: longstanding partner ABC/Disney, as well as incoming entities NBC and Amazon Prime.
Then there is the splintering of traditional audiences, with over-the-air and cable giving up viewers to streaming and even piracy. And still, ratings remain a nagging NBA topic.
“It’s part of the culture in the NBA that we’re self-critical,” Silver said. “That our fans, it’s part of the culture around the league to be looking at what’s bad as opposed to what’s good. I think it seeps into our coverage, quite honestly, sometimes.”
The commissioner even anticipated questions at his news conference, touching on it in his opening remarks.
Said Silver: “Mayor [David] Holt here in Oklahoma City, I thought, said it best: Of the 19,502 cities, towns and villages in the United States, Oklahoma City is larger than 19,482 of them. Said differently, about 300 million Americans live in cities smaller than Oklahoma City and Indianapolis, which is a bit larger.
“That means that 88% of Americans live somewhere smaller than these cities.”
Concerns about audience size may be a by-product of the variety of Finals matchups and what the NBA terms “the parity of opportunity” in this current era. Six different teams have won the past six NBA titles, and whether it’s the Thunder or the Pacers, a seventh franchise will walk off with the Larry O’Brien Trophy this year.
Overall, 12 different franchises have shared the 16 available Finals spots since 2018.
The days of tuning it to see the Lakers vs. the Celtics, year upon year, are gone. Over time, the Bulls, Spurs, Warriors and Cavaliers had standing reservations, too. Not anymore.
“It becomes more part of the conversation that somehow it must be a bad thing for the league if one of those teams isn’t competing,” Silver said.
“Obviously, to be very clear and intentional, I love what’s happening in the league right now. I’ve been an advocate for these changes. I think it’s great that we have two so-called small markets competing. But I’m not even sure it’s fair to describe them that way.
“I think we want a league ultimately where if you are a fan of the game of basketball, by definition you’re going to want to tune into the Finals because this is the best basketball that is being played.”
Reporters asked Silver questions on a slew of topics, including:
Expansion
Silver laid out a few of the pros and cons on a perennial issue, then said the prospect of adding franchises would be discussed at the Board of Governors meeting next month in Las Vegas.
“It will be on the agenda to take the temperature of the room,” he said. “We have committees that are already talking about it.”
A different type of growth for the league also will be explored: An NBA-sanctioned league in Europe, where fans have embraced the game and the North American version in impressive numbers.
“I view that as a form of expansion as well, and that’s something we’re also thinking hard about,” Silver said.
All-Star Game format
Commissioner Adam Silver discusses potential modifications to the All-Star Game.
The mini-squad mini-tournament in February in San Francisco didn’t wow a lot of fans or viewers and Silver was quick to acknowledge it failed. There has been speculation about a “Team USA vs. Team World” competition, divvying up the NBA’s stars by birthplace, domestic or foreign born.
That’s tricky though, because for all the impact of international players, the league still is roughly 70% Americans, 30% imports. So a multi-squad format might be in the offing again, combining the approaches.
“Something that brings an international flavor into All-Star competition,” Silver said. “I don’t think a straight-up ‘USA vs. World’ makes sense.”
Ideas are being kicked around, he said, with the NBA Players Association involved.
Shortened season
Silver remains unpersuaded that the 82-game schedule is too long or that four rounds of seven-game playoff series increases the number of injuries suffered by players.
And he definitely doesn’t think cutting games – limiting earning opportunities for all parties involved – is the way to go.
“I would rather then start earlier maybe or push a little bit later,” he said.
Turner Sports
The league’s 41-year business relationship with the erstwhile-Turner Sports, home of TNT game telecasts and the popular “Inside the NBA” studio show, ended Saturday with the completion of the Western Conference Finals. Silver did not let that pass unnoticed.
“Their coverage has been fantastic,” he said. “It’s not just the on-air talent, but I want to share my appreciation and thanks with literally the hundreds – probably over the 41 years thousands – of people who have worked on NBA production. [I] wish them well.”
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Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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