NEWSLETTER
Whether it’s a first-place standing, two All-Star representatives, or an ongoing MVP campaign, I don’t need to tell you the Chicago Bulls are back. So I’ll let the TV ratings do it for me!
According to the Sports Business Journal, the Bulls have seen the number of eyeballs on their team skyrocket this year. Ratings are up 83 percent(!!) from last season, which now gives the team the 5th-highest average viewership in the NBA.
Here’s how the top-1o shapes up:
1. Warriors (7.63)
2. Cavaliers (3.74)
3. Philadelphia 76ers (2.72)
4. Milwaukee Bucks (2.61)
5. Chicago Bulls (2.52)
6. Boston Celtics (2.37)
7. San Antonio Spurs (2.29)
8. Portland Trail Blazers (2.28)
9. Indiana Pacers (1.95)
10. Miami Heat (1.88)
Considering it’s the first season of a resurgent effort, the Bulls seem to be in a pretty good place when it comes to regaining local viewership. One would have to think more sustained success and a convincing playoff performance would keep this team trending in the right direction come next season.
The viewership also seems to track with what we’ve seen at the United Center. Once consistently at the top of the NBA’s home attendance leaderboards (in part thanks to having one of the biggest arenas in the league), the Bulls dropped to 2nd over 2019’s 41 games before plummeting to 11th during the 2020 campaign’s 34 games (before the league-wide shutdown). However, through 32 homes games this year, the team’s nightly attendance has reclaimed the top spot, per ESPN.
So what did we learn today? If you field a competitive team, the city of Chicago will prioritize watching that competitive team. Wow, what a concept!
