What do you get when two heated rivals with a combined three former MVP’s take on one another in the NBA Playoffs? A television ratings bonanza.
That has been the case thus far in the Houston Rockets and Golden State Warriors Western Conference Semifinals series.
Game 4 Monday night in Houston was no different. The game — broadcasted on Turner Sports — drew 6.881 million viewers. For comparison’s sake, the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks Eastern Conference Playoff game drew almost half of that audience.
The NBA must be hyped that the playoffs worked out this way. Realistically, the Warriors and Rockets should be playing in the conference finals. It was a rating bonanza in that round last year.
Despite Golden State aiming for its fifth consecutive trip to the NBA Finals, there’s been no lack of interest in the team. Add in the historic performance we’ve seen from Rockets star James Harden this season, and it’s no surprise that ratings are elevated at this level.
Houston took Game 4 of the series in dramatic fashion. With the series tied at two, Game 5 will be played in Oakland Wednesday night. We wouldn’t be surprised if the ratings were even better for that game.