Could the Iconic ‘The Finals’ Logo Make a Surprise Return to NBA Courts? Adam Silver Hints at Big Reveal

There’s something oddly nostalgic floating through the air this NBA Finals season – and no, it’s not just the fierce showdown between the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder lighting up the court. It’s that unmistakable absence of the classic, sweeping “The Finals” logo etched right on the hardwood. Once a hallmark of these championship battles, this giant emblem has quietly vanished from the court over the past decade, leaving fans and pundits alike feeling that something’s missing. After a surge of online chatter lamenting this void, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver finally weighed in, admitting he hadn’t given it much thought until social media brought the issue front and center – and he’s hinting that a revival might just be on the horizon. The story behind this missing symbol has layers: from player safety concerns about slippery decals to a shift in how the league packages the Finals spectacle, and even a curious contrast with the flashy in-season NBA Cup. As the debate unfolds and anticipation builds for Game 2 in OKC, one thing’s clear – the NBA might be ready to reimagine tradition in a way that stirs the soul of the sport once again. LEARN MOREThe “Finals” logo ceased to become a court feature in 2014, with the league citing player safety due to the slipperiness of the decals. It has since made some cameos, appearing in a small form on the Cleveland Cavaliers’ court in 2017 and as the featured logo on the COVID-19 bubble court of the 2020 NBA Finals.AdvertisementFrom The Athletic:

From The Athletic:

It’s been a while since we’ve seen this logo on an NBA Finals court. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

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“One of the reasons we moved away from the logos on the courts is — whether it was perception or reality — there was a sense that maybe the logos added some slipperiness to the court, and it was a change sort of on the court that was coming just at the time of the Finals. … Maybe it’s for superstitious reasons or just a sense from teams that we shouldn’t be changing things around such important competition. That’s largely why we stopped putting the logos on the court.”

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