For most of last season and even until the start of the 2025-26 campaign, the NBA’s viewership was surrounded by several question marks. With the overall NBA, including the All-Star Weekend ratings dropping, many believed that this might not be a great sign for the times to come. However, that has changed just a few months into the new season, with the league revealing its latest viewership data.

Is the NBA finally back to where it belongs? Understanding the case through the viewership chart

National NBA games being televised on NBC/Peacock, Amazon Prime Video, and ESPN have drawn a whopping 87 million viewers, which is the most people have tuned in to watch the league in roughly 15 years. Not just that, this number is almost up by 89 percent since last year, according to the league’s announcement on Monday.

Adam Silver and Co. have managed to pull in the audience despite all the off-court controversies around the league. All the way from the illegal gambling arrests to Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers’ alleged salary-cap circumvention, the league has faced one of its worst phases in recent years and still managed growth.

Nonetheless, these terrific numbers are fueled by the NBA’s blockbuster opening night that featured a doubleheader on October 21st, the league’s first games on NBC since 2002. Those two games between the Rockers and the Thunder and the Warriors and the Lakers attracted about 5.6 million viewers (including Peacock), which was almost a 90 percent hike from last year’s opening night.

How has the trend been? Viewership in the current season vs the past 4 years

There’s no doubt that the NBA has seen a massive surge in viewership this season, which might be largely driven by the league’s strong opening month and, of course, the newly inked 11-year $76 billion media deal. But how does this strong start hold up against the past few seasons?

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Note: The data for the current season is for the games televised so far, while the others are full-season averages.

It seems like the new media rights deal is paying its dividend even two months into the season. As you can see in the table, the averages since the 2021-22 season have been on a decline until this season, where there’s a clear spike in the viewership. And a huge reason is the new deal, which has helped the NBA garner much more attention.

However, another reason could be the overall competitiveness of the league. Last season, the Indiana Pacers defied all odds and reached the NBA finals, a storyline that made everyone tune in. This season, yet again, the league continues to deliver with massive clashes almost every night. Either way, this is only beneficial for the NBA as it increases brand engagement and revenue.

What does it tell us about the league? Viewership and brand engagement sources

Well, it’s not just the viewership numbers that have seen a massive hike this season. Even the NBA content has commanded more than 30 billion views across all social media platforms. Moreover, even the merchandise sales have gone up by more than 20 percent. The league believes that these numbers are driven by the next generation of stars.

These obviously include the likes of Jalen Brunson, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Anthony Edwards, Victor Wembanyama, Tyrese Maxey, Luka Doncic, Cooper Flagg, and others. While this alone on its own is great news, both the increased social media engagement and the spike in merchandise sales, what makes it even better is that it’ll further generate more brand exposure for the NBA.

According to Relo Metrics, brands have earned a collective $2.3 billion in Sponsor Media Value throughout the 2024-25 season, a number that is set to increase this year.

“The NBA continues to set the bar for sponsorship performance—on and off the court,” said Jay Prasad, CEO of Relo Metrics.

“With over $2.3B in brand value and a social ecosystem that outpaces every other U.S. league, the data tells a clear story: investment in the NBA delivers.”

Indeed, that’s the case. These increased numbers will certainly prompt more brands to partner up with the league, further generating more revenue for the teams and players. So, by the looks of things, if the NBA season keeps these stats until the end of the season, it’ll only bring good news for the entire basketball ecosystem.