You better put asterisks on the Warriors title in 2015 after Kyrie and Love went down then. And don’t forget about the Warriors title in 2017 after Kawhi went down, the Warriors title in 2018 when CP3 went down (with Houston having a 3-2 lead), and the Raptors title in 2019 when Durant went down.

Asterisks for all!
[Reply]

Was about to say the same but already covered. Not even a superstar player plus their second and third best players got hurt in the first game. The least interested I’ve been in watching the finals in as long as I can remember.
[Reply]

Injuries are a part of the game.
[Reply]

Bam says he’s coming back for game 3. He’s basically the Heat’s entire defense but we’ll see what he looks like if still hurt.
[Reply]

And in 2020, so are pandemics. Excuses are for losers.
[Reply]

I don't think so. If you go back and look the ratings were on the decline before GS came long on their run and then they gave the NBA a much needed boost. They play a much more fun and exciting style then everyone else and of course while not the best player, Curry is probably the biggest draw in the NBA.

The problem is either the NBA doesn't have marketable stars or has done a worse job marketing than in the past. People don't embrace the players and rivalries like in years past. People related to guys like Magic, Bird, MJ, Shaq, Reggie, Barkey, Rodman, Zo, Robinson, Garnett and Kobe. They had a charismatic factor I'm not seeing in today's players. It's like Tommy Gunn replacing Rocky. It just doesn't feel right.
[Reply]

2016 Warriors/Cavs Game 7 got 31M viewers (which was the highest total since Bulls/Jazz '98). People will still tune in if you've got a highly competitive series between two great teams (that hadn't happened in 2017 or 2018 and was somewhat the case last year as well with the Raptors/Warriors, but a Canadian team will destroy US ratings every time).
[Reply]

Tough to just poo poo away this year.

1998 Game 6 – 35.89 million
1993 Game 6 – 32.10 million
2016 Game 7 – 31.02 million
Least watched
2020 Game 1 – 7.41 million
2007 Game 1 – 7.76 million
2003 Game 2 – 8.06 million
[Reply]

JFC, watch or don't, who gives a shit?
[Reply]

Happening to all these sports outside of their regular windows.
[Reply]

Butler with one of the greatest Finals games
[Reply]

lebron is a total bitch for walking off
[Reply]

That may be the worst roster to ever win a finals game. AI's 6ers were close.
[Reply]

Awesome effort from him. Embarrassing effort from the Lakers. LeBron played more or less his standard game (25-10-8) but Anthony Davis completely took the night off. If that happens again, the Heat can win games in this series with as bad as the Lakers’ depth is. We aren’t done here yet.
[Reply]

Not even close. LeBron’s 2015 Cavs come to mind (they were starting guys like Dellavadova, Shumpert and Mozgov after Kyrie and Love went down). Heat are like 10 deep with good players.
[Reply]