ABC and ESPN delivered the largest NBA Finals Game 3 audience since 1998, averaging 23.8M viewers, according to Nielsen Big Data + Panel. The Game 3 audience was up 159% from last year’s Game 3 and peaked with 26.3M viewers at 11:15 p.m. ET.
Through three games, the 2026 NBA Finals is ABC and ESPN’s second most-watched ever, averaging 19.1M viewers. It is up 114% from last year’s Championship series.
Monday’s Game 3 on ABC and ESPN was the largest television audience since Super LX in February. Additionally, NBA Finals Game 3 was the most-watched program of the day across all of television and in all key male and adult demos for June 8.
NBA Finals All‑Access with The Pat McAfee Show – ESPN’s alternate presentation of Game 3 – averaged 1.1M viewers — the most‑watched NBA alternate telecast ever on ESPN.