NBC Sports Delivers Most-Watched NBA Tip-Off Primetime Game Ever With 76ers-Knicks
Philadelphia-New York averages a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 7.7 million viewers and peaks with record 9.1 million viewers at 9:45 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.
October 23, 2026
NBC Sports’ presentation of American Express NBA Tip-Off on Tuesday was led by 76ers-Knicks (7:04-10:02 p.m. ET), which averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 7.7 million viewers to become the most-watched NBA Tip-Off primetime game ever, up 32% from last year’s early primetime game (Rockets-Thunder, 5.9 million on NBC and Peacock), and up 5% from the previous record of 7.3 million for Heat-Celtics in 2010 on TBS and TNT, according to official Nielsen Big Data + Panel and digital data from Adobe Analytics. Viewership peaked at 9.1 million – an NBA Tip-Off record – from 9:45-10:00 pm ET as the 76ers clinched the victory.
In his first game in a Philadelphia uniform, LeBron James teamed with two-time All-Star Tyrese Maxey to spoil the Knicks’ championship banner-raising night, as the 76ers beat Jalen Brunson and New York 106-100 at Madison Square Garden.
NBC Sports also delivered the most-watched NBA Tip-Off night ever. The primetime doubleheader of 76ers-Knicks and Thunder-Spurs averaged a TAD of 6.4 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, the most-watched primetime NBA Tip-Off doubleheader on record (since 1995) and up 14% from last year’s Rockets-Thunder and Warriors-Lakers doubleheader (5.6 million on NBC/Peacock). The previous NBA Tip-Off doubleheader record was 5.7 million in 2010 on TBS and TNT, headlined by LeBron James’ Miami Heat debut against Boston.
First-ever NBA Tip-Off Tripleheader on one network averages tad of 5.1 million viewers
In the nightcap, Thunder-Spurs (10:02 p.m.-12:29 a.m. ET) averaged a TAD of 4.8 million viewers, the second most-watched late primetime NBA Tip-Off game ever, trailing only last year’s Warriors-Lakers game on NBC and Peacock (5.1 million). In a rematch of last season’s epic seven-game Western Conference Finals, two-time reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander poured in a game-high 32 points as the Thunder took down 2026 Defensive Player of the Year Victor Wembanyama and the defending West champion Spurs, 116-104.
The 2026-27 season tipped off with a special daytime presentation of Celtics-Pistons (3:00-5:43 p.m. ET), which averaged a TAD of 2.5 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, making it the most-watched weekday afternoon regular-season game ever, excluding holiday games. Detroit rallied from 22 down in the second half to beat Boston, 121-113, behind All-Star point guard Cade Cunningham’s 22 points and eight assists. Altogether, the first-ever NBA Tip-Off tripleheader on one network averaged a TAD of 5.1 million viewers.
NBC Sports’ NBA coverage continues next week with three marquee matchups. On Monday, Oct. 26, Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors visit Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets in the season premiere of Peacock NBA Monday at 10 p.m. ET on Peacock and NBCSN. On Tuesday, Oct. 27, Coast 2 Coast Tuesday debuts on NBC and Peacock, as Jalen Brunson and the defending champion New York Knicks host Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons at 8 p.m. ET, followed by Luka Dončić and the Los Angeles Lakers hosting Deni Avdija and the Portland Trail Blazers at 11 p.m. ET.
Coast 2 Coast Tuesday will present doubleheaders on most Tuesdays, with an 8 p.m. ET game on NBC stations in the Eastern and Central time zones, and an 8 p.m. PT game on NBC stations in the Pacific and often Mountain time zones. Check local listings each week. Both games will stream live nationwide on Peacock.
