NBA Team Market Size Rankings

Size does matter when it comes to running a professional sports franchise.

There are several distinct advantages to running an NBA team in a “large” market, such as local advertising and sponsorship opportunities, free agent lure, and partnerships with impactful local celebrities.

Plus, the NBA’s local network deals make up for a hearty portion of the association’s total revenue. The bigger your local viewing audience, the more revenue you’ll see from your TV deal.

The size of a local TV audience is defined by the number of homes in the viewing area, per US census data.

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2022 NBA Market Size Rankings

Large NBA Markets (over 2 million homes)
Team TV Market Size* Metro Population**
1. New York Knicks / Brooklyn Nets 7.453M 19,216,182
2. LA Lakers / LA Clippers 5.735M 13,214,799
3. Chicago Bulls 3.472M 9,458,539
4. Philadelphia 76ers 2.997M 6,102,434
5. Dallas Mavericks 2.963M 7,573,136
6. Toronto Raptors 5,928,040
7. Golden State Warriors 2.653M 4,731,803
8. Atlanta Hawks 2.649M 6,020,364
9. Houston Rockets 2.570M 7,066,141
10. Washington Wizards 2.566M 6,280,487
11. Boston Celtics 2.490M 4,873,019
12. Phoenix Suns 2.158M 4,948,203
Medium NBA Markets (1.5 – 2 million homes)
Team TV Market Size* Metro Population**
13. Minnesota Timberwolves 1.887M 3,654,908
14. Detroit Pistons 1.863M 4,319,629
15. Denver Nuggets 1.798M 2,932,415
16. Orlando Magic 1.731M 2,608,147
17. Miami Heat 1.693M 6,166,488
18. Cleveland Cavaliers 1.512M 2,048,449
Small NBA Markets (less than 1.5 million homes)
Team TV Market Size* Metro Population**
19. Sacramento Kings 1.459M 2,363,730
20. Portland Trailblazers 1.315M 2,492,412
21. Charlotte Hornets 1.291M 2,636,883
22. Indiana Pacers 1.183M 2,074,537
23. Utah Jazz 1.100M 1,232,696
24. San Antonio Spurs 1.031M 2,550,960
25. Milwaukee Bucks 922K 1,575,179
26. Oklahoma City Thunder 755K 1,408,950
27. New Orleans Pelicans 664K 1,270,530
28. Memphis Grizzlies 620K 1,346,045

* TV market sizes courtesy of Sports Media Watch.

** 29 US Metro Market sizes are 2019 estimates, Toronto metro size from 2016. Toronto TV market size data unavailable.
Source (29 U.S. Teams): https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2010s-total-metro-and-micro-statistical-areas.html
Source (Toronto): https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/hlt-fst/pd-pl/Table.cfm?Lang=Eng&T=201&S=3&O=D

What is the Smallest Market in the NBA?

The smallest NBA market in terms of TV audience is Memphis. New Orleans is a smaller metropolitan area than Memphis, but the Pelicans have a slightly larger TV reach.

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What is the Biggest Market in the NBA?

New York is the largest market in the NBA, in terms of both population and TV viewing audience. Followed closely by Los Angeles, it’s no surprise that the two markets which each host two franchises are the largest.

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Founder of HoopSocial. Girl Dad. WNBA stan. Syracuse Orange and Charlotte Hornets fan. Sarcasm is my native tongue. You can follow me on Twitter at @mike_hoopsocial.