NEW YORK — The NBA draft delivered its highest rating on ESPN, surpassing the mark set 11 years ago when LeBron James was the No. 1 pick.
The telecast Thursday had a 3.1 overnight rating, according to Nielsen, a 19 per cent increase from last year’s 2.6 mark.
The previous record for the draft was 2.7 overnight in 2003, the first year the network televised it. James was the first pick that year in a top five that included Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
