NBA Finals Ratings Impress Even With Nielsen Measurement Context

In earning their first NBA title in 53 years, the New York Knicks gifted the league and ABC the biggest TV turnout since Michael Jordan celebrated his final championship in 1998.According to Nielsen Big Data + Panel estimates, the Knicks’ five-game defeat of the favored San Antonio Spurs averaged 20.6 million viewers per night, making this year’s installment of the Finals the most-watched since the Chicago Bulls beat the Utah Jazz in six games. Over the course of what would prove to