In the face of stiff competition from an NBA playoff game, Friday’s edition of SmackDown scored its lowest total viewership of 2024.
Courtesy of reporting by Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics, SmackDown drew 2,128,000 viewers, its lowest viewership since December 29th, 2023, and down 1% on the previous week.
The show went head-to-head with the Knicks vs. Pacers NBA playoff game on ESPN, which garnered an average of 4,491,000 viewers.
However, SmackDown fared better in the key 18-49 demo, which reached 0.62, an increase of 3% on the previous episode. By comparison, the NBA game hit a demo rating of 1.37.
Nevertheless, SmackDown was the top-rated show on Friday for broadcast television.