Game 1 of the NBA Finals will mark the on-court return of a 16-year absence for the league’s biggest prize, the Larry O’Brien trophy.
After the 2009 NBA Finals, in which the Lakers defeated the Magic, the league did away with the trophy decals after players found them slippery.
But this year the trophy is back and is painted on the courts, much to the early approval of fans and media, after complaints over a lack of pageantry last year.
To get the backstory, Front Office Sports spoke with Christopher Arena, the NBA’s head of on-court and brand partnerships.
Adam Silver’s decision to create the NBA Cup, and the polarizing courts that came with it, seemed to provide the fateful assist for the trophy’s return.
