Game 1 of the NBA Finals had a lot of talking points during the game on social media, but the one that is getting buzz up to the commissioner is that there is no NBA Finals/Larry O’Brien branding on the court. The NBA Cup has its branding throughout the tournament, showing that it can be done. So it’s disappointing to see another year since 2014 with NO NBA FINALS BRANDING AT ALL ON THE COURTS. On Sunday evening, there were digital logos of the Larry O’Brien trophy on the broadcast, but Adam Silver said that the branding could return in 2026, according to NBC Sports.
Adam Silver’s Assessment on the Situation
I don't know why this pisses me off so much but there's literally nothing on the court that would indicate we're watching an NBA Finals game. Yes, the Larry O'Brien Trophy on the court was beautiful and should be brought back but there isn't a Finals logo anywhere. Ridiculous. pic.twitter.com/VhmCLMApyI
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) June 6, 2025
Silver talked to Sam Amick at The Athletic on Sunday about the Larry O’Brien Trophy logo branding on the courts on Sunday before the Start of Game 2 of the NBA Finals. Here’s the full quote from Silver.
“To be honest, I hadn’t thought all that much about it until I [saw] it [on social media],”
Silver said. “I’m nostalgic, as well, for certain things. And also, I think for a media-driven
culture, whether it’s people watching live or seeing those images on social media, it’s
nice when you look back on highlights and they stand out because you see that
trophy logo or some indication that it’s a special event. So we’ll look at it.”
Like I mentioned in the intro, there hasn’t been a large Larry O’Brien Trophy logo on the court since 2014, due to player safety concerns, as the decal logos placed on top of the courts were slippery. Even though it probably won’t be painted on like the NBA Cup Court, because we don’t know who’s playing in the Finals until a few days before they start, there is probably a technological way to do something with the Larry O’Brien logo on the court in the broadcast.
Final Thoughts
The NBA needs to add more of the NBA Finals Branding on the courts, and a Large Larry O’Brien Trophy would go a long way in making the NBA Finals meaningful again. I think that Adam Silver is going to make that change, as well as the changes he’s already made to things like the All-Star format, etc. This change could be great for the NBA moving forward if implemented because of how much the Finals branding means to people over the years.
