In terms of longevity, ESPN’s NBA Today is still a relative newcomer in the sports programming landscape.
But the show, which launched in October 2021, continues to show steady year-over-year gains in viewership.
ESPN announced Wednesday NBA Today viewership for March increased 8 percent over March 2023. Those numbers included some impressive gains in one demographic in particular, as Hispanic viewership increased 38 percent.
🏀 ESPN's "NBA Today" continues to grow. Viewership was up eight percent in March 2024 compared to March 2023. Black viewership was up three percent from last year, as was Hispanic viewership, which was up 38 percent. (Nielsen). pic.twitter.com/C26yQue1Sz
— Ben Cafardo (@Ben_ESPN) April 3, 2024
The show has been averaging in the neighborhood of 300,000 to 350,000 viewers in recent months.
Host Malika Andrews retweeted Wednesday’s news, adding, “The highlight of my afternoon is talking hoops with you all. Thanks for hanging with us.”
The highlight of my afternoon is talking hoops with you all. Thanks for hanging with us 🫶🏾 https://t.co/mspStDRcfs
— Malika Andrews (@malika_andrews) April 3, 2024
At its best, the show offers some good analysis and hot takes, such as the recent debate about whether or not the New York Knicks “have a dude” needed to carry the team.
Becky Hammon: [The Knicks] don't have a dude… you got to have a 1A dude."
Kendrick Perkins: "They do have that dude."
B: "Who?"
K: "Jalen Brunson."
B: "He too small. If your best player is small, you're not winning… Steph Curry is the only dude."pic.twitter.com/XWhJHZXpxT
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) December 21, 2023
Then there are the moments when things don’t go so well. Witness the time in 2023 when the network forgot to censor f-b0mbs out of a video clip the show aired from Paul George’s podcast.
All in all, the show is trending in the right direction in the ratings.
NBA Today airs Monday through Friday on ESPN from 3-4 p.m. ET. In addition to Andrews, the show features a number of different analysts and reporters, including Kendrick Perkins, Richard Jefferson, Chiney Ogwumike, Ramona Shelburne, Zach Lowe, Adrian Wojnarowski and Brian Windhorst.
