This time we have almost all the figures in the NBA playoffs. Although Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks were eliminated in the first round, the conference semifinals are LeBron James, Stephen Curry, James Hareden, Kevin Durant, Jayson Tatum, Devin Booker, Jimmy Butler…and the result is extremely close series that have captured the fans who attend the arenas, but also the fans who watch the games on television.
Why is Play In a success story in the NBA?
The 2022-23 NBA season has represented a success story within the sport for different reasons, although success and trends are almost a specialty of the NBA as a league, since it must be remembered that The NBA was the one that led the pause worldwide in sports due to the pandemic.
It was also the responsible for the concept of the “bubble” and protocols in the resumption of sport globallybut also found a new competition format, the Play In, which is here to stay for good. Four years after the implementation of this prelude to the playoffs, we talked with Raúl Zárraga, director of NBA Mexico, who helped us understand the success of the Play-In.
“(Play-In) encourages competition. It adds value to the audiences and adds value to the attendances, which are the thermometers that indicate that we are doing things well. The core of our business is the product on the field and this has been one of the most competitive seasons in our history. Two weeks after the end of the regular season, there were 26 teams mathematically alive.”, shared in Sopitas.com.
The manager explained that by having 26 of the 30 teams with postseason options, not only were television audiences held captive in the United States and Mexico, Rather, the arenas were filled in almost 800 games throughout the season, as those games in which nothing was played were somehow eliminated.
“The NBA broke all-time attendance records with 22 million people in regular season games. Were almost 800 sold-out dates to enter the arena”. Although a similar stage was implemented in the soccer Liga MX, with the implementation of the playoffs, in the NBA competition was not sacrificed during the regular season.
The almost perfect playoffs in the NBA in Mexico
Unlike last season, in the 2023 playoffs if the Lakers are there, who reached the conference semifinals precisely from the Play-Infor which a greater impact is expected in terms of audience numbers compared to 2022, taking into account that the Los Angeles team is the one that sells the most jerseys in Mexico, while LeBron James is the player with the most jerseys sold individually.
“The most followed team in Mexico is still the Lakersbut the Warriors, Miami, Suns are very attractive… but in terms of official merchandise, in three months they have sold more in Mercado Libre than we had projected ”, shared.
What is missing from the 2023 playoffs to be perfect, at least in Mexico? The answer is found in Juan Toscanowho was champion with the Warriors in 2022 and in the current season started with the Lakers, although the Mexican was finally sent to the Utah Jazz.
“It would have definitely added value, it would have been a very important element for the Lakers or the Warriors. Yeah, it definitely would have made the impact we’ve been making bigger.. Juan added a lot of value to the audiences and I hope he can find his way for the next season ”, iRaúl Zárraga indicated.
NBA ID, the program that seeks to bring fans even closer
In Mexico, the NBA season is a success story, as Zárraga explained to us that ESPN, the television station that has the broadcasting rights, increased its audience by 32%48 million interactions were generated on social networks before reaching the conference finals and Mexico was the third country with the most consumed All-Star Weekend.
Faced with this situation, the NBA finds fertile ground to move to Mexico the NBA ID, that was implemented in the United States earlier in the season, and now the objective is that the Mexican fans can begin to become familiar with it In the first phase and to encourage its consumption, trips will be given away to go to one of the final matches, as long as you participate before May 14.
“It’s a loyalty program which originates in the United States, and part of the project is to extend it to Mexico, Brazil and Latin America. We are in a first phase, in which We are doing tests so that people become familiar with it”, Indian.
Other aspects will be implemented in the following phases to link them to Capitanes, the Mexican G-League team, as well as programs for coaches, clinics and other promotions. “Tomorrow is about adding value through variables.”
