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Hawks have NBA’s biggest drop in local TV ratings, report shows

Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer confers with Kent Bazemore.

Credit: Curtis Compton

Credit: Curtis Compton

Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer confers with Kent Bazemore.
By
April 24, 2018

The Hawks’ TV ratings tanked this season, too.

Amid a 24-58 season on the court, the rebuilding Hawks had the NBA's largest percentage decline in local TV ratings for the 2017-18 season, according to a SportsBusiness Journal analysis this week of league-wide data.

Nielsen ratings for Hawks telecasts on Fox Sports Southeast fell 53 percent from the 2016-17 season to an average of 0.52 in the Atlanta TV market, the study found. That rating means 0.52 out of every 100 homes in the market watched, equaling an average  audience of about 13,000 homes per game this season.

The next largest ratings decline in a team’s local market was the Phoenix Suns’ 48-percent drop. The Suns had a 21-61 record, the NBA’s worst this season.

The Hawks’ decline left them with the league’s third lowest local TV rating, ahead of only the Orlando Magic (0.48) and Brooklyn Nets (0.38). At the other end of the spectrum, the SBJ study showed the Golden State Warriors averaged an 8.36 local TV rating, the league’s highest.

Across the league, local ratings rose an average of three percent for the season, according to the study, which included 28 of the 30 teams. Data was not available for Memphis and Utah.

About the Author

Tim Tucker, a long-time AJC sports reporter, often writes about the business side of the games. He also had stints as the AJC's Braves beat writer, UGA beat writer, sports notes columnist and executive sports editor. He was deputy managing editor of America's first all-sports newspaper, The National Sports Daily.

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