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The 2017 NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers is the most-watched NBA Finals since 1998 through four games, according to Fast Nationals from Nielsen. The series, which is being telecast by ABC, is averaging a total live audience (television plus streaming) of 19,788,000 viewers, up 12 percent from 17,696,000 viewers in 2016.
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On ABC, the series is averaging 19,380,000 viewers, plus an average minute streaming audience of 408,000 viewers.
Friday night's Game 4 broadcast, when the Cavaliers defeated the Warriors 137-116, delivered a total live audience of 19,387,000 average viewers, up 15 percent from a total live audience of 16,867,000 viewers in 2016.
Game 4 peaked on ABC with 22,450,000 viewers from 11-11:30 p.m. ET.
In addition, Game 4 delivered a 12.6 metered market rating, up five percent from a 12.0 for last year's Game 4, according to Nielsen. The broadcast peaked with a 14.9 rating from 11:15-11:30 p.m. ET.
The 2017 Finals are averaging a 12.8 metered market rating through four games. This is up five percent from a 12.2 in 2016.
The Game 4 broadcast delivered a 35.5 rating in the Cleveland market and a 32.1 rating in the San Francisco-Oakland market. The other top local markets include: Columbus (18.9); Sacramento (16.8); Memphis (16.5); Atlanta (16.0); San Antonio (15.6); Miami (15.4); Birmingham (14.7); Chicago (14.3).
ESPN set multiple NBA Finals Game 4 streaming records. The game delivered 71,592,200 total minutes streamed, 1,901,000 unique viewers and an average minute streaming audience of 374,800 viewers -- all Game 4 records.
The NBA Finals was the most-watched telecast across all of television for the 59th consecutive time.
The Warriors lead the best-of-seven series 3-1 heading into Game 5 on Monday night at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif.
