Suns' Kevin Durant hopes fans 'stay invested in game' despite drop in NBA viewership

Suns’ Kevin Durant hopes fans ‘stay invested in game’ despite drop in NBA viewership

Posted by Admin December 26, 2024 NBA

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Phoenix Suns‘ superstar Kevin Durant loved the 6-of-6 start from 3 in Wednesday’s 110-100 Christmas win Wednesday over the Denver Nuggets at Footprint Center.

He isn’t so sure the fans enjoyed it.

“We know the fans hate 3s, but we generated a lot of them just from getting into the paint and kicking them out,” Durant said. “Once you can touch the paint and get guys open looks, not even a contest, the confidence goes sky high. It was one of those nights we needed that good start.”

That led to follow-up questions about NBA viewership being down this season, which Durant didn’t hesitate to address.

“It’s a weird dialogue around the league and the viewership and I see a lot of people blaming the players for it,” Durant said. “Something that big, it’s not just one component in why it’s going that way.”

Front Office Sports reported ESPN’s NBA viewership was down 28% a month into the season. Durant expects an uptick in numbers off Wednesday’s five games, which averaged a five-point margin of victories, the lowest ever for a Christmas slate of at least five league games on the holiday.

“Today was a step in the right direction to get people excited again for the game of basketball,” Durant said. “Hopefully, it’s not just because it’s Christmas. Hopefully they stay invested in the game and invested in each player and each team throughout the rest of the season, not just the playoffs or the finals. Games in January, I want to see the viewership get back up.”

The Lakers and Warriors provided the most thrilling finish as Austin Reaves hit a game-winning layup on Andrew Wiggin with a second remaining at Chase Center in San Francisco.

“I love the NFL, I love the NFL, but Christmas is our day,” said Lakers superstar LeBron James. The National Football League had two games on this year’s holiday.

Durant concluded his postgame comments saying, “the league isn’t going anywhere, but we’re in a rough patch when it comes to that.” He received a follow-up question about the players taking the brunt of the criticism for why viewership has taken a dip.

“We’re most visible,” Durant said. “You don’t get to see the executives, the analytics guys or the GMs, you see us. You see us all the time. So it’s easy to kind of throw it at us. And we make so much money.

“People look at us like, we can take it, but like I said, it’s more than just one factor on why this league is great and it’s not just the players why it’s great. It’s not the just the players why the viewership is not up, too. We all play a part why the league is what it is.”

Durant then revisited his time with the Oklahoma City Thunder to make a point about the NBA’s impact. The state of Oklahoma never had an NBA franchise before the Seattle Supersonics relocated to OKC going into the 2008-09 season.

“I know how important that is,” said Durant, who played his rookie season with the Sonics. “I know how it changes lives, inspires lives. It does a lot for people. I take this serious and I’m locked in as to why people don’t want to watch us play no more or why they don’t like the 3-point line or what the real problem is. I’m trying to think about it, understand it ’cause I love this game and I want to see it keep growing.”

Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.

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