Anthony Davis LeBron James
Photo: Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press

The absence of LeBron James and Anthony Davis has affected the viewership of Los Angeles Lakers games.

 Per SportsMediaWatch.com, TV ratings of Lakers games have dropped significantly, with James and Davis out.

“With James and Anthony Davis both out due to injury, the Lakers’ blowout loss to the [New Orleans] Pelicans Tuesday night averaged 920,000 viewers on TNT — down 35% from [Houston] Rockets-[Milwaukee] Bucks on the comparable night in 2019 (1.41M) and the least-watched Laker game on ESPN, ABC or TNT since James joined the team in 2018,” “The previous low was 970,000 for a 2019 Lakers-Jazz game in which James sat out.

By comparison, the Lakers’ previous game on one of those networks — James and company against the [Golden State] Warriors on ESPN March 15 — averaged a much healthier 1.29 million, up 11% from 2019 ([Indiana] Pacers-[Portland Trail] Blazers: 1.16M),” SportsMediaWatch.com reports, via Lakers Daily.

James and Davis could return to the Lakers in mid-April, with the defending champions currently being fourth in the standings, at 30-17.