Warriors-Thunder Game 7 Breaks Cable Record for Highest-Rated NBA Game (Updated)
TNT hands the reins — and viewers — over to ABC for the Finals
Tony Maglio | May 31, 2016 @ 8:15 AM
Last Updated: May 31, 2016 @ 2:07 PM
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Congratulations go out to the Golden State Warriors for their huge Game 7 Western Conference Finals win last night — and to TNT for landing perhaps even bigger TV ratings.
Nielsen has reported that Monday’s matchup nabbed a massive 15.9 million total viewers, on average. Not only is that large enough to be the biggest NBA game in cable history, it’s also TNT’s top telecast ever.
The Bay Area team’s comeback victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Memorial Day set a new cable record for highest-rated NBA game of all time, hauling in an 11.2 household overnight rating, which is based on the 56 metered markets monitored by Nielsen.
The contest peaked between 11:15 and 11:30 p.m. ET, with a massive 13.8. Locally, the game got a 30.9 rating in San Francisco and a 30.0 in Oklahoma City.
The tiebreaker also proved quite a boon for TNT studio show “Inside the NBA,” which hit a series-high 4.8 rating on Monday evening. Fast national numbers for Game 7 should be out shortly.
Starting Thursday, ABC will reap the viewership benefits of a Cleveland Cavaliers-Warriors NBA Finals rematch — and, boy, can the Disney broadcaster use a long and competitive series.
Last year, it was Steph Curry (pictured above) and Golden State that eventually took home the trophy. LeBron James & Co. are out to make sure that doesn’t happen again.
9 NBA Stars Who Took a Shot at Hollywood (Photos)
Michael Jordan
It's only fitting that the greatest basketball player in history would star in the biggest basketball film of all time. His Airness plays himself in "Space Jam" as he comes out of retirement to save the Looney Tunes from being kidnapped by giant aliens.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
After pretending to just be an airline pilot named Roger Murdock in "Airplane!," the famous basketball player angrily responds to one of his critics in the form of a young boy in one of the film's many zany moments.
Gheorghe Muresan
For 1998's "My Giant," Billy Crystal cast NBA center Gheorghe Muresan for the role of Maximus, the titular big man. Crystal plays a huckster who tries to use Maximus' height for his personal advantage. Crystal based the film on the relationship he developed with Andre the Giant while filming "The Princess Bride."
Ray Allen
Just two years into a record-breaking career, Ray Allen turned in a critically-praised performance in "He Got Game" as Jesus Shuttleworth, a high school senior who is pressured by his father (Denzel Washington) into playing for a certain college that can pull some strings and get him out of prison.
Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille O'Neal has played a genie ("Kazaam") and a superhero ("Steel") as well as cameoing in many of Adam Sandler's comedies. But he got his start by playing a college basketball player in 1994's "Blue Chips," acting opposite Nick Nolte as his coach. O'Neal was nominated for a Razzie Award for Worst New Star for his performance.
Dennis Rodman
Hollywood took one glance at Dennis Rodman and decided, "There's a star." The Chicago Bulls forward starred with Jean-Claude Van Damme in 1997's "Double Team." The acting may have been subpar, but the writers were able to mix it in with some truly awful one-liners. Rodman won three Razzie Awards for his performance in the film.
Larry Bird
One of the NBA's all-time greats appeared as himself in "Space Jam," wisely telling Bill Murray that he should stick with acting and give up his basketball dreams. Bird also cameoed in "Celtic Pride," which starred Daniel Stern and Dan Aykroyd as die-hard Celtic fans who kidnap an opposing player to help their team.
Rick Fox
Arguably the player with the most successful transition from the court to the big screen, Rick Fox has participated in films ranging from "He Got Game" to "Meet the Browns," as well as playing a baseball player in a memorable cameo from "Holes."
Darius Miles
Drafted out of high school, Darius Miles rode his early NBA stardom to a role in "The Perfect Score." Acting alongside Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson, he played a high school basketball player who was desperate enough for a high SAT to join a band of students intent on stealing the answers.
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From the hardwood to Hollywood: TheWrap takes a look at some of basketball’s finest who have dabbled in acting
Michael Jordan
It's only fitting that the greatest basketball player in history would star in the biggest basketball film of all time. His Airness plays himself in "Space Jam" as he comes out of retirement to save the Looney Tunes from being kidnapped by giant aliens.
