Why NBA Viewership is Down but Not Betting – Plus NBA Betting Tips

Why NBA Viewership is Down but Not Betting – Plus NBA Betting Tips

Television viewership is down this season, close to 20 percent as of mid-December and this isn’t news because since 2012, the ratings are off 48 percent according to various reports.

Yet, the NBA just signed a new TV deal that kicks in next year at a substantial increase and attendance is still strong, so somebody cares.

On various social media sites, these are the top reasons why basketball fans are not watching as often.

>Too Much 3-Point Shooting
>Lack of Physical Play
>Bros Friendliness Limits Aggression

There are several others, but these three keep coming up. Here’s what people are thinking.

With the advent of analytics in all sports, they have not made the product more visually appealing, just more efficient when it comes to scoring, trading three-point opportunities for two points. When teams regularly come down the court and four players run to spots and the dribbler is trying to penetrate toward the basket, has success, and whips the ball to a 7-0-foot player to shoot from 24 feet or deeper, that doesn’t register with many viewers.

With the spacing on the court, the amount of physical play is greatly diminished. Nobody is yearning for the late 1980s-90s when there were legal muggings when driving down the lane, but a return of physicality would be welcome by many people.

Most consumers of sports love rivalries. For fans of particular teams, nothing beats dropping your chief rival. However, with so many NBA players on social media sharing life experiences, many go on vacations together in the off-season or hang out in Vegas, Miami, or L.A., the fans want the players to hate certain teams as much as they do and there is hardly any of this in today’s NBA.

Betting the NBA Remains Strong and You Don’t Need to Watch to Win

Despite all the negativity surrounding The Association, betting on pro basketball remains high.

The level of frustration for bettors and cappers alike with injuries or player availability is well known. But most are resigned to waiting it out and making later wagers.

What has helped NBA betting immensely is player and team props. This has brought in a whole new kind of bettor who started at fantasy sites and generally has graduated. These are mostly younger bettors who don’t follow the same rules and reasoning of those who came before them, but if they lack the discipline of the previous generation, the sportsbooks welcome them with open arms.

Betting Trends to Follow – Look for OVER’s With This Bunch

Cleveland Cavaliers 22-11-1 OVER

Cleveland came on a mission this season, to improve their overall scoring depth to have more players involved in all facets of the offense and be less dependent on Donovan Mitchell as their leading scorer. It has worked with the Cavaliers #2 in scoring and #1 in offensive efficiency. Credit first-year head coach Kenny Atkinson for applying what he learned as an assistant at Golden State for the difference. The Cavs also generate more assists than the previous two years, moving up to #5 and they take far better care of the ball, #4 in fewest turnovers compared to #16 a year ago.

Atlanta Hawks 23-13 OVER

We are somewhat surprised to see Atlanta with this many OVERs. The Hawks are well-known for giving less than a stellar effort on defense and they like to play fast and fire up shots, regardless of the quality. However, this is not breaking news about Atlanta. What is different about the Hawks is they are healthier across the board, which has improved their overall scoring and consistency on offense, while still not putting in the same effort on the other side of the court. Continue to watch for Atlanta for OVERs.

Denver Nuggets 22-12 OVER

Since winning an NBA title, Denver has returned to its roots of trying to just outscore the opposition. Of course, you want to score more points than the other team to win, but during their championship season, defense was a bigger part of the equation and they had numerous bench players who could alter games by defending. All those players are gone except for the core group and if you follow the Nuggets today, they are average to slightly below as a group defensively compared to Top 10 defensively previously.

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