Back on Oct. 9, 2024, Netflix and the NBA presented their collaboration in the docuseries known as ‘Starting 5’. To sum things up, the show features five star players who reveal their lives off the court.
However, despite the show’s star power, Netflix appears to be forced to cancel ‘Starting 5’ after two seasons. Oklahoma City Thunder guard Jalen Williams expressed his thoughts on the show’s cancellation.
Jalen Williams Calls Out ‘Starting 5’
After two seasons of Netflix and the NBA’s ‘Starting 5’, the docuseries has been cancelled. This is due to the poor viewership rating the show received after the release of Season 2 on Oct. 16.
Thunder guard Williams spoke his mind on why Netflix was forced to shut the show down. Williams reposted an image on his Instagram story reporting the show’s cancellation. He then called out the show, saying:
“It’s cause it sucked. They cut out all the good stuff.”
Jalen Williams reacts to ‘Starting 5’ being canceled pic.twitter.com/yNQeie94kA
— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) November 25, 2025
It appears that star power alone wasn’t enough to keep the show alive. During its first season, ‘Starting 5’ debuted with a bang, featuring star players like Jimmy Butler, Anthony Edwards, LeBron James, Domantas Sabonis, and Jayson Tatum.
‘Starting 5’ gave a different perspective on these star players. It showed a different side that many fans don’t get to see on a daily basis. Most fans know NBA players for who they are on the hardwood and how they act when doing media work.
Thanks to Season 1’s success in 2024, Netflix renewed the series for a second season. This time around, the show featured Jaylen Brown, Kevin Durant, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Tyrese Haliburton, and James Harden.
However, it’s worth noting that during the first season of ‘Starting 5’, despite their success, they were lagging behind the NFL’s docuseries known as ‘Quarterback’. The goal for Season 2 was to overtake their football rival, if not be on par with it.
While official viewership statistics for ‘Starting 5’ won’t come out until 2026, third-party data analytics have revealed that Netflix and the NBA found no success in meeting their goal this year, thus forcing them to cancel the show.
While many assume that the show’s cancellation is due to viewership ratings, Netflix has yet to address their reason. There are rumors that Netflix and the NBA simply couldn’t come up with a deal. However, that wouldn’t make sense given the amount of basketball content Netflix has produced for the league over the years.
