The National Basketball Association of North America (NBA) is the world's most prestigious and commercially successful basketball league, and its games are among the most-watched sporting events on the planet.

The NBA audience covers millions of people across all continents — from Latin America to Africa and Southeast Asia. The secret to its popularity lies in the combination of athletic spectacle, innovative technologies in game broadcasting, and skillful marketing decisions. In this material, we will analyze all the intricacies of American basketball and the secrets of working with the NBA fan audience.

Basketball: A Brief Overview

The game involves two teams of five players each. Including substitutes, a team can consist of up to 12 people.

The goal of the game is to shoot the ball into the opponent's hoop and defend your own. The team that scores the most points wins. If the score is tied, a five-minute overtime period is assigned to determine the winner.

During the game, players dribble, pass, or shoot the ball, avoiding violations such as:

• traveling: taking more than two steps without dribbling.
• double dribble: when a player stops while holding the ball and then starts dribbling again.
• exceeding the 24-second shot clock limit and other fouls.

A match lasts 48 minutes and is divided into four quarters of 12 minutes each. This is playing time: the time only runs during active play and stops during timeouts, fouls, and other pauses.

Points are awarded as follows: 1 point for a successful free throw after an opponent's foul, 2 points for a field goal shot taken from inside the three-point line, and 3 points for a field goal shot taken from behind the three-point line.

What the NBA Season Consists Of

The NBA championship features 30 teams, which are divided into two regional divisions — the Eastern and Western Conferences, with 15 teams in each.

The season consists of four parts: the Regular Season, Play-In Tournament, Playoffs, and the Finals Series. The Regular Season and Play-In typically run from October to April. After that, the Playoff stage begins. The season finale usually falls in early June.

Regular Season

This is the main part of the season, in which conference teams compete against each other. The goal is to determine the 8 best teams from each conference that will advance to the next stages. The better a team's result at the end of the regular phase, the easier opponent they can potentially get in the Playoffs. The game schedule is very dense — matches occur almost every day, which ensures a constant flow of news and high audience activity.

Play-In

This is a series of single-elimination games held between the teams ranked 7th through 10th in each conference based on the results of the Regular Season. Three Play-In games are held in each conference: 

• 7 vs 8 — the winner gets the 7th seed;
• 9 vs 10 — the loser is eliminated;
• Loser of 7–8 vs Winner of 9–10 — the winner gets the 8th seed.

The goal of the Play-In is to determine the four teams that will join the 12 participants who advanced to the Playoffs from the Regular Season.

Playoff

This is the highest-rated part of the NBA season. It involves the 16 best teams competing for the right to reach the tournament Finals. Every match in the series is a major event, attracting many viewers and traffic. The goal of the Playoffs is to determine the conference winner who will play in the Finals.

The matchups are held using the Olympic system: pairs of teams play a series until one team achieves four victories. Thus, a single confrontation can have up to seven games.

Interesting fact: Never in NBA history has a team trailing 3-0 in a series completed a comeback and won it. But in every Playoff, there are situations where this record could be broken, which greatly increases interest among bettors.

NBA Finals

The two conference-winning teams meet in the Finals — a best-of-seven game series that determines the best team of the season. The champions receive the Larry O’Brien Trophy and championship rings. The Finals become the culmination of the season and attract the attention of millions of fans.

Other Season Events

All-Star Game

Approximately halfway through the NBA season, usually in February, the All-Star Game takes place — an exhibition game featuring the league's best basketball players. It pits the teams of the Eastern and Western Conferences against each other. The team rosters are determined by voting from fans, players, and journalists. The game does not affect the season results — it is a celebratory event for viewers.

The event includes not only the game itself but also separate contests, which are very popular for betting:

• Three-Point Contest is a competition for three-point shooting;
• Slam Dunk Contest is a competition for spectacular dunks;
• Skills Challenge is a competition testing agility and coordination.

The format of the All-Star Game is often subject to experimentation. New technologies in lighting and broadcasting are frequently tested during the broadcasts. For example, in 2024, an LED court that reacted to player actions was used for the first time in the All-Star Game. 

Trades

A Trade is an exchange of players between teams. Teams can exchange active players as well as draft picks — the rights to select rookie players in future seasons.

Trades do not involve breaks in the season and can occur at any time up until the trade deadline — the cutoff date for making transfers. The deadline usually falls in February to limit roster changes before the Playoffs. Once the transfer deadline passes, team rosters remain unchanged for the rest of the season.

The period leading up to the deadline sees teams becoming highly active: this is when the most significant exchanges happen, and consequently, a large amount of event-driven traffic is generated.

NBA Draft

The NBA Draft is an annual event where teams select new players, discover talent, and update their rosters. It takes place in June, after the conclusion of the Playoffs.

The most promising players are selected first. The selection order is determined by a lottery: teams that did not make the Playoffs have a chance to receive a higher draft pick. For example, the team with the worst regular-season record has the highest probability (usually around 14%) of receiving the first pick, which increases its chances of signing the best rookie.

The Draft is broadcast live and attracts many viewers. Betting companies also offer bets on the NBA Draft.

 NBA in Media

Reach

As of early 2025, the total number of subscribers across the league's official social media accounts exceeded 210 million users. According to Statista, the NBA ranks 3rd among sports leagues in terms of global digital reach, trailing only the NFL (American football) and the EPL (soccer).

In 2025, the NBA launched a new streaming platform, NBA+, which attracted 15 million subscribers in its first quarter and became especially popular in regions with limited television broadcasts, such as South Asia and Africa. Accordingly, this opened up more new GEOs for attracting traffic. 

Franchises

An NBA franchise is a team that has significant influence and success both on the sports arena and in the media space. Such teams hold enormous media weight due to global recognition, active social media accounts with large audiences, and regular coverage in major media outlets. These franchises have become iconic brands with multi-million-dollar audiences.

Franchise games have record-breaking viewership ratings, and their star players influence fashion and pop culture. Fan-pages dedicated to the top teams or stars can quickly amass a large and active audience.

Major NBA franchises:

• Golden State Warriors – 47 million subscribers.
  Top stars: Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler (78 million subscribers);
• Los Angeles Lakers – 40 million subscribers.
  Top stars:  LeBron James, Luka Dončić (368 million subscribers);
• Cleveland Cavaliers – 21 million subscribers.
  Top stars: Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland (5 million subscribers); 
• Chicago Bulls – 17 million subscribers.
  Top stars: Josh Giddey, Coby White (2.3 million subscribers); 
• Boston Celtics – 14 million subscribers.
  Top stars: Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown (22 million subscribers). 

Transmedia Projects

A significant part of the NBA's popularity is based on its active involvement in projects not directly related to sports. Through audience crossings, the association and its individual teams regularly receive an influx of new viewers and fans.

For sports bloggers and media, using content that reflects the additional interests of subscribers increases their loyalty, engagement, and contributes to audience growth.

Understanding fan interests allows for a significant increase in the effectiveness of advertising strategies. You can set up more precise targeting, using creatives adapted for specific audience segments, which will improve conversion and reduce advertising costs.

Collaboration with brands

Brands like Nike or Adidas don't just sign players to contracts; they launch signature product lines. The release of new "LeBrons" or rumors about the design of new models attracts as much attention as a major trade. Kim Kardashian's SKIMS attracts an audience to basketball that traditionally doesn't follow sports but is interested in style and trends. Fashion fans following Kim Kardashian (over 360 million Instagram followers) begin to associate basketball with their lifestyle, making the NBA part of their cultural experience.

Players like LeBron James or Russell Westbrook, known for their appearances in designer clothes before games, become style icons. Their "tunnel looks" (pre-game fashion) — the outfits athletes wear upon arriving at the match and entering the locker rooms — gain millions of views on TikTok and Instagram, which heightens the interest of the fashion-following audience in the NBA.

Video Game industry

The NBA 2K game series unites gamers, basketball fans, streamers, and influencers. The annual update of player ratings with the release of a new game in the series, discussion of cover stars, and gameplay innovations — all constantly spark heated discussions among players and generate a lot of traffic.

NBA 2K was also one of the first game series to use casino mechanics — loot boxes. Loot boxes caused widespread controversy globally, which also brought a lot of additional attention to both the game series and the NBA itself, leading to new players and viewers.

NBA and the Kardashian family

In addition to fashion collaborations, the NBA regularly receives an influx of new viewers from fans of the reality show "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" and its spin-offs. Kendall Jenner's romances with NBA players like Devin Booker, Blake Griffin, or Jordan Clarkson create a unique audience intersection.

Kendall's fans, primarily young women aged 18–30, start following the NBA to support her boyfriends. For example, her relationship with Devin Booker increased viewership of Phoenix Suns games among the female audience by 12% during the 2021–2022 season. Jenner's posts about basketball, such as Stories from games, gather millions of views.

Film collaboration

The association, individual teams, and players regularly participate in the production and release of feature films and documentaries. For example, the "Space Jam" film series featuring Michael Jordan and LeBron James became a global hit.

Streaming companies also regularly release documentaries dedicated to NBA teams and players. According to Netflix, projects like Starting 5 and The Last Dance show excellent conversion: over 15% of viewers who were not interested in basketball before began following the league.

Collaborations with bloggers

The partnership between YouTube star MrBeast and the Charlotte Hornets in the 2023–24 season was the first-ever NBA collaboration with an influencer. Although the deal with his brand Feastables concluded in 2024, its influence is still there. Thanks to an audience of over 350 million subscribers across all platforms, MrBeast attracted a huge number of viewers from the young, digital generation to the NBA.

Best NBA traffic sources:

• Instagram — the leader in engagement. Any activity by NBA stars automatically becomes a viral newsbreak. The most popular formats: Stories and Reels with news, memes, and match highlights;
• X (Twitter) — the center for news and discussions. According to X Analytics (2025), NBA-related posts attract 1.5 billion views monthly, and the hashtag #NBA is consistently among the platform's top 10 sports hashtags. Players also frequently voice opinions on the platform, which attracts additional traffic. Main formats: short news, discussions;
• TikTok — the leader in the short-video segment. In 2024, the NBA invested in TikTok promotion, and the league's official account attracted 25 million subscribers and 10 billion views during the season. The most sought-after formats are highlights and memes; 
• YouTube — the hub for review and analytical content. The league's official channel and channels of media partners (ESPN, Bleacher Report) gather billions of views; independent sports journalists and publications are also popular. Main formats: reviews, highlights, news, analytical breakdowns, podcasts. 

Audience Profile

Understanding the audience profile allows you to identify key characteristics and use them for effective promotion, setting up targeted advertising, and content adaptation.

Gender characteristics of the NBA audience:

• Men make the majority of the NBA audience in all regions, with shares ranging from 52% (UK) to 70% (Italy, China);
• The growth in the female audience and engagement is particularly noticeable in Europe and the US, due to the development of women's basketball, audience crossovers, and changing cultural attitudes.

Age structure

Globally, an average of 47% of NBA fans are in the 18-34 age range. This is confirmed by a YouGov study covering the Association's American and international audience.

Generation Z (16-24 years old) is showing increasing interest in the NBA due to active content consumption through TikTok and Twitch.

Average age by region:

• Asia: 50% of fans are 18-34 years old; 30% are 35-54 years old.
• Europe: 52% of fans are 18-34 years old.
• Latin America: 70% of the audience is 13-44 years old.
• Africa: 55% of fans are 18-34 years old.

Working with Content

Quality content plays a key role, increasing audience engagement, conversion of advertising campaigns, and providing organic growth through word-of-mouth. Let's look at the main content formats that contribute to traffic growth and audience interest.

News content

Fast and relevant notes on events and rumors in the NBA — transfers, injuries, records. Speed is critically important: the bigger the news hook and the faster the publication, the higher the traffic. Ideal format for Telegram and X/Twitter.

Target Audience: Men and women aged 18–35. Such content is especially interesting to the younger audience who want to follow current trends.

References:

Telegram: NBA News – League Alerts

X/Twitter: Insider Chris Haynes

Analytics

In-depth analysis of the game, as well as team and player statistics, best-of lists, and standings. Formats with large video breakdowns are excellent for YouTube, while shorter formats work well for Telegram.

Target Audience: Men aged 25–44. These are more adult and hardcore fans who want to delve into the details but lack the time for constant viewing of matches and news.

References:

YouTube: Thinking Basketball

Telegram: Bleacher Report NBA

Highlights

Videos of the best match moments like dunks, three-pointers, block shots. These are the trademarks of the NBA. Memes featuring players and funny moments are also great. This content works well for short videos on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube Shorts.

Target Audience: Men and women aged 13–34. Because this content is especially popular in vertical video format, the target audience is younger.

References: 

• TikTok: 
• • House of Highlights; 
  • Best Crosses;
• Instagram: 
• • NBA Failz; 
  • Basketball Gainzz.

Historical retrospectives

Stories about NBA legends and eras. Comparison of past and present, archival footage, and interviews. This is excellent for YouTube and has no shelf life, allowing it to attract traffic for longer.

Target Audience: Men aged 25–44. Due to nostalgia, the majority of the audience is in the adult range, but this format is also interesting to young people engaged in basketball.

References:

• YouTube: ClaytonCrowley
• Instagram: @ThrowbackHoops

Top influencers in the field 

Major bloggers and projects dedicated to the NBA provide a good benchmark for those developing their own traffic sources or planning advertising campaigns. They can help you better understand the behavior and preferences of the target audience.

By analyzing their content, you can easily determine subscriber interests, understand which topics, tone and style of communication, and visuals generate the most response. This helps adapt your own content to meet audience expectations.

Studying influencers also helps track current trends. They are the first to pick up memes, hot discussions, and launch challenges — all of which allow for the creation of relevant, engaging content, inspiring the creation of new and the development of existing formats.

Finally, it is important to observe how advertising is integrated to understand which approaches elicit the most positive response from the audience.

Youtube:

• Jesser  —  the biggest basketball blogger globally, sets trends in challenges;
• NBA on TNT — the main team of NBA TV analysts. Provides both topics for discussion and video memes. For example, the recurring segment "SHAQTIN' A FOOL" featuring the funniest moments of the week always makes news rounds; 
• Jiedel — challenges, reactions.

X/Twitter

• Hoop Central — news, analytics.

Instagram

• House of Highlights — NBA match highlights, memes, viral moments;
• NBA Memes — humor, memes. 

Information Sources

Fresh analytics and unique statistical facts are available on these resources:

• nba.com — official NBA site, news, game schedule, statistics;
• espn.com/nba — extensive game coverage, statistics, and expert opinions;
• nytimes.com/athletic — a large number of analytical articles;
• basketball-reference.com — the site with the most comprehensive statistics and data on NBA players, teams, and seasons;
• viziball.app — a resource for data visualization, including graphs, player, and team rankings.

All news and rumors can be sourced from the main insiders on X/Twitter:

• Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn);
• Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania);
• Dave McMenamin (@mcten);
• Brian Windhorst (@WindhorstESPN);
• Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes).

The NBA is an extremely promising and profitable, but far from the only direction for betting traffic campaigns. To always stay informed about new traffic monetization opportunities, follow the updates on the 1win Partners blog and subscribe to our social media channels.