This Thursday, TNT has another NBA doubleheader. Both the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat will be involved, but they’re not going to play each other. Miami will be in Chicago to take on the Bulls while the Celtics will be out west taking on Denver. We have details from TNT on what will be aired Thursday plus we look ahead to next week’s double dip.
NBA Action Continues on TNT with an Exclusive Doubleheader Featuring Heat @ Bulls and Celtics @ Nuggets
Special one-hour pre-game show recaps the NBA trade deadline
TNT NBA Thursday continues on February 24 with a special one-hour edition of NBA Tip-Off at 7 p.m. (ET). Ernie Johnson (host), Charles Barkley (analyst), Kevin McHale (analyst) and Kenny Smith (analyst) will preview the night’s action and will be joined by TNT NBA Insider David Aldridge to break down all the moves made at Thursday’s NBA trade deadline. Following the pre-game show, the network will present an exclusive doubleheader beginning at 8 p.m. (ET). The first game will feature LeBron James and the Miami Heat in the Windy City to take on Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls. Play-by-play announcer Kevin Harlan will call the game alongside analyst Reggie Miller with Craig Sager reporting. In the second game of the night, Kevin Garnett and the Boston Celtics visit Nene and the new-look Denver Nuggets at 10:30 p.m. (ET). Marv Albert (play-by-play) and Steve Kerr (analyst) will be courtside with Cheryl Miller reporting. The Emmy® award-winning studio show Inside the NBA with Johnson, Barkley and Smith will recap the games.
Through 38 games, the NBA on TNT is averaging a 1.5 U.S. rating (+26%, 1.2 U.S. rating), 2,377,000 total viewers (+30%, 1,832,000 total viewers) and 1,770,000 households (+27%, 1,390,000 households) over last year’s corresponding coverage. In addition, this season is +26% on total viewers compared to Turner’s next best regular season audience from the 1995-96 season (total viewer average 2,377,000 vs. 1,885,000).
Exclusive content, analysis from TNT announcers and replays of Inside the NBA are available on TNT OverTime on NBA.com. The broadband channel gives fans the inside scoop on players, coaches and storylines taking place around the league seven days a week. Check out the NBA on TNT pages on Twitter (http://twitter.com/NBAonTNT) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/nbaontnt) to see the latest NBA on TNT schedule, news updates and special features from TNT announcers.
NBA ON TNT NBA SCHEDULE:
DAY/DATE TIME (ET) EVENT Thu., February 24 7 p.m. TNT NBA Tip-Off Ernie Johnson (host), Charles Barkley (analyst), Kevin McHale (analyst) and Kenny Smith (analyst) with David Aldridge (reporter) 8 p.m. Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls Kevin Harlan (play-by-play) and Reggie Miller (analyst) with Craig Sager (reporter) 10:30 p.m. Boston Celtics @ Denver Nuggets Marv Albert (play-by-play) and Steve Kerr (analyst) with Cheryl Miller (reporter) Post-game Inside the NBA Ernie Johnson (host), Charles Barkley (analyst), Kevin McHale (analyst) and Kenny Smith (analyst) NBA ON TNT UPCOMING SCHEDULE:
Thu., March 3 8 p.m. TNT NBA Tip-Off Ernie Johnson (host), Charles Barkley (analyst) and Kenny Smith (analyst) Orlando Magic @ Miami Heat Kevin Harlan (play-by-play) and Reggie Miller (analyst) with Craig Sager (reporter) 10:30 p.m. Denver Nuggets @ Utah Jazz Dick Stockton (play-by-play) and Kevin McHale (analyst) with Cheryl Miller (reporter) Post-game Inside the NBA Ernie Johnson (host), Charles Barkley (analyst) and Kenny Smith (analyst) Source: Nielsen Media Research. Based on Live+SD. NBA Regular Season on TNT STD; 38 games vs. 37 games. (10/26/2010-2/17/2011) vs. (10/27/2009-2/18/2010).
And let’s do a jump break as we have another NBA press release.
This comes from NBA Digital as the league’s website and mobile site received record hits during All-Star Weekend, plus there was a record amount of programming on NBA TV.
Let’s get the details on the weekend.
NBA Digital Showcases Star-Studded 2011 NBA All-Star with Record Breaking Coverage for NBA.com and NBA Mobile
– NBA.com sets record with nearly 83 million video streams viewed during NBA All-Star –
– 2011 Slam Dunk receives record 4.5 million votes via NBA Mobile-
– NBA TV airs more than 95 hours of All Star related programming –
NBA Digital guided fans through a star-studded, high-flying weekend and provided record breaking coverage of the 2011 NBA All-Star weekend for NBA.com and NBA Mobile. NBA.com received a record nearly 83 million video streams and nearly 170 million page views, an increase of nearly 350 percent and 140 percent respectively, from last year’s All-Star record. The record video streams included an all-time single-day mark of more than 28 million video streams viewed by fans on Saturday, Feb. 19. To date, more than 1.2 billion videos have been viewed by fans on NBA.com this season, more than double last year’s record pace.
Overall, NBA Digital provided fans with more than 95 hours of All-Star programming on NBA TV including the Magenta Carpet show with interviews from NBA All-Stars, NBA Legends and some of Hollywood’s biggest celebrities, while NBA.com’s All-Star Scene initiative used Flip Video cameras to capture all the best behind-the-scene moments. NBA Mobile also brought the thrilling weekend to fans’ fingertips with voting for the Rookie Challenge & Youth Jam MVP, the NBA All-Star MVP award, and the winner of the Slam Dunk.
Along with the NBA.com records, the exciting final round of the 2011 Slam Dunk received a record 4.5 million votes via NBA mobile during All-Star Saturday Night, eclipsing last year’s mark of more than 1.2 million votes. The new NBA All-Star Pulse also provided an innovative look at social media trending topics and content throughout the weekend and registered more than 1 million mentions on Facebook.
“NBA Digital’s record setting numbers during All-Star Weekend show the power of our cross-platform strategy,” said Bryan Perez, senior vice president and general manager of NBA Digital. “TV, online, mobile and social media were all working in concert and allowed fans to follow the excitement, anytime, anywhere on any device.”
NBA Digital’s additional record-breaking highlights during All-Star included:
- The site’s All Star Scene had a record 3.0 million video streams, a 34% increase from last year.
- TNT OverTime Access, a mosaic featuring live alternate camera angles of the Saturday and Sunday All-Star events, had a record number of streams Saturday night with 1.5 million and a total of more than 314,000 hours of live video viewed over the two days.
The event was also a hit on TNT, drawing huge audiences for All-Star Saturday Night presented by State Farm and the NBA All-Star game. Highlights included:
- The 2011 NBA All-Star Game on TNT delivered 9.1 million total viewers, 6 million households and a 5.2 U.S. HH rating, along with strong growth across all key demos, according to Nielsen Fast Nationals. This year’s star-studded contest in Los Angeles ranks as the most watched and highest rated game since 2003, which featured Michael Jordan’s final NBA All-Star appearance of his career. The 2011 NBA All-Star Game also posted strong growth over last year, an increase of +33% in total viewers (9,093,000 vs. 6,846,000), +36% in households (5,975,000 vs. 4,399,000) and +37% in U.S. HH rating (5.2 vs. 3.8 U.S. HH rating).
- TNT’s exclusive coverage of the 2011 NBA All-Star Saturday Night was the most watched All-Star Saturday Night in the event’s 26 year history. The event delivered 8.1 million total viewers, 5.1 million households and a 4.4 U.S. HH rating, based on Nielsen Fast Nationals. The 2011 event saw increases of +23% in total viewers (6,554,000), +14% in households (4,466,000) and +13% in ratings (3.9 U.S. HH) over the previous record set in 2009. In addition, NBA All-Star Saturday Night out-delivered the 2010 telecast by +49% in total viewers (8,090,000 vs. 5,441,000), +43% in households (5,100,000 vs. 3,563,000) and +42% U.S. HH rating (4.4 vs. 3.9).
And that will do it.
In addition, the 2011 NBA All-Star Game and All-Star Saturday Night, which was the most watched in the event’s 26-year history, combined to average more than 17 million total viewers.
