(OutKick) Let’s start this article with a simple exercise.
For readers with two working eyes and a brain: does the graph below spell out GOOD or BAD ratings for the NBA from 2020 to 2023? …
What could this mean?!
Bad, right?
Well, the sports media won’t point that out, and the basis for their cover-up may have to do with the NBA being the most woke of all major American sporting leagues.
See, when the NBA decided to rev up its support for BLM and value the Chinese market over die-hard basketball fans, support began to decline.
The NBA’s failing appeal became evident in their promotion of leftist politics and awkward silence regarding China’s human rights violations.
China is one big wallet for the NBA, so when the CCP says JUMP, the NBA responds with a 40-inch leap.
America is a bad place in the NBA’s messaging, but China is just alright. The hypocrisy was too much for some viewers, so they decided to ditch the league.
Most recently, the 2022-23 NBA Finals averaged 11.6 million viewers — the league’s fourth-lowest total in the last 30 years.
The NBA has seen four of its five lowest-rated NBA Finals since their hyper-woke turn in 2020.
The mainstream media and NBA personnel will go to the grave thinking it’s all a coincidence and attack any outlet willing to speak up against the declining audience numbers.
OutKick founder Clay Travis explained why in his latest piece examining the woke NBA …
WHICH YOU CAN READ HERE: NBA IS THE ORIGINAL BUD LIGHT, AND NO ONE IN MAINSTREAM SPORTS MEDIA WILL TELL YOU THAT | CLAY TRAVIS
… but that didn’t sit well with Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.
Travis and Cuban got into another online spat on Thursday after Travis called out Cuban and the NBA for failing to address the league’s problem with woke.
Previously, Cuban tried to vouch for Disney, claiming that its failing stock has nothing to do with its progressive agendas inserted in children’s content. He waltzed into Clay’s mentions on Twitter, claiming “conservative media” is also a failing industry.
Cuban is saying that the NBA doesn’t struggle with woke and tried to call out A.M. RADIO LISTENERS (the most innocent demo in America) in his defense.
Way to miss the mark, Cuban.
Hey @mcuban, you love hopping in my mentions. Why did the NFL set an all time viewership record this year — as did NCAA men’s & women’s basketball — but the NBA peaked 25 years ago in viewership? Look forward to hearing your analysis. https://t.co/4XBsB3L0lm
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) July 6, 2023
Here’s the Thread In A Nutshell:
1. False. NBA Finals ratings are at thirty year lows. The data doesn’t lie. NBA ratings peaked 25 years ago. Meanwhile NFL, CFB, & men’s and women’s basketball continue to set record highs. https://t.co/4XBsB3L0lm 2. Audio evolves. We get 15 million+ podcast downloads a month. https://t.co/prcXLIwEa9
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) July 6, 2023
