The NBA’s return to NBC and Peacock on Tuesday night delivered the largest NBA Tip-Off doubleheader audience since 2010 with 5.6 million viewers across both platforms, based on Nielsen Big Data and Adobe Analytics. The Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Houston Rockets in double overtime in the first game on ring night, while the Golden State Warriors beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the nightcap.
The 2010 NBA Tip-Off doubleheader that drew 5.7 million viewers featured LeBron James’ debut with the Miami Heat. Tuesday’s broadcast excluded the 2011 season opener that aired on Christmas Day.
The audience peaked at 7.1 million viewers from 10:45-11 p.m. ET during the closing moments of the Thunder-Rockets double overtime thriller. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the defending champion Thunder to a one-point victory over Houston.
Thunder-Rockets averaged 5.9 million viewers across NBC and Peacock for the full game. The contest marked only the sixth tip-off game to reach double overtime in NBA history and the first since 2005.
The entire 2024-25 season featured only four double overtime games. Alperen Sengun led Houston with 39 points while Kevin Durant scored 23 points in his Rockets debut.
The Warriors-Lakers game averaged 5.1 million viewers across NBC and Peacock. The measurement began at 11:02 p.m. ET when NBC joined the game in progress and concluded at 12:42 a.m. ET.
Jimmy Butler scored 31 points and the Warriors hit 17 three-pointers in a 119-109 victory. Luka Doncic led all scorers with 43 points for the Lakers.
NBC’s broadcast won the night in primetime among Adults 18-49 against all networks based on Nielsen data. The Average Minute Audience on Peacock and NBC Sports Digital reached 1.0 million viewers, marking NBC Sports’ largest simulstream audience ever excluding NFL and Olympics.