‘Starting 5' faces sudden cancellation after slipping viewership

Starting 5 was brought to an end after two seasons, as confirmed by Sports Business Journal.

The documentary series began in 2024 and followed five NBA players across their regular season routines.

The cameras showed locker room moments, travel days, practice sessions and quiet scenes from the lives of the athletes when they were away from the court.

The first season featured LeBron James, Jimmy Butler, Jayson Tatum, Anthony Edwards and Domantas Sabonis. Even with well known players, the series did not attract strong viewership.

Data shared by What’s on Netflix, showed that Season One gathered 4.6 million views from July to December 2024, while the following months brought close to 1 million views.

Industry reports compared these numbers with other sports projects on the same platform.

However, quarterback reached 12.7 million views during its early release window. F1 Drive to Survive reached 10.4 million views.

Both shows held steady presence in weekly Top Ten rankings as Starting 5 did not appear in those charts during either season.

Figures for Season Two have not been released at the time of the report and the lack of chart placement suggested limited audience reach.

The decision arrived while the platform continued to expand its sports content.

The company has been investing in athlete focused stories and competition based projects and had been using viewership as a guide for future renewals.

Furthermore, Starting 5 offered full season access to NBA players and added another title to the growing list of sports documentaries.