NEW YORK  — NBA fans seem more excited about basketball’s return than bitter about the lockout based on television ratings for the league’s delayed openers.

The five Christmas games Sunday averaged 6.2 million viewers based on fast national ratings, up from 6 million last year.

The Bulls-Lakers matchup was the third most-watched regular-season game ever on ABC, behind only last year’s highly anticipated Heat-Lakers showdown and another meeting between Miami and LA in 2004.