NBA Commissioner Adam Silver addressed the criticism surrounding the 2025 NBA Finals, which feature two small-market teams: the Indiana Pacers and the Oklahoma City Thunder. Despite their impressive playoff runs, the matchup has drawn negative attention for one key reason: ratings.
After battling through their respective conferences, the Pacers and Thunder earned the right to compete for a championship. But while both teams have proven themselves on the court, Game 1 of the Finals drew a historically low viewership. Silver addressed this issue in detail during a recent media availability.
Adam Silver Addresses Discussions About Low Ratings and Viewership for the Pacers-Thunder 2025 NBA Finals
Though the Pacers-Thunder series has been praised for its competitive potential, its appeal to casual viewers has suffered. Without marquee franchises like the Los Angeles Lakers or New York Knicks, the Finals have struggled to attract a broad national audience.
As a result, Game 1 averaged 8.9 million viewers and a 4.7 rating, according to Sports Media Watch — the least-watched Finals opener since Nielsen tracking began in 1988, excluding the COVID-impacted Finals in 2020 and 2021. Silver addressed the ratings in a recent interview in front of reporters ahead of Game 2:
“On one hand, I like the fact that people are talking about us. I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing. It seems a little unusual how much discussion there is around ratings in this league. I’m a fan of all sports, and I follow lots of media, and it feels like there’s a lot more chatter.”
Adam Silver on the unusual chatter around NBA ratings of late:
“On one hand, I like the fact that people are talking about us. I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing. It seems a little unusual how much discussion there is around ratings in this league. I’m a fan of all… pic.twitter.com/wbDCMVM1AY
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) June 7, 2025
Silver continued, “When I’m walking down the street and fans come to me, … the first thing they are going to say is, ‘How are the ratings going to be?’ — as opposed to, ‘Wow, you’ve had two incredible conference finals. What a great playoff series you’ve had.’ So I can’t quite put my finger on it.”
Silver’s comments reflect a broader frustration with how attention has shifted away from the on-court product. While he acknowledged that the league is often self-critical, he questioned why the success of two well-earned conference champions is being overshadowed by market size and television metrics.
