The Thunder have been at house Sunday evening to face the Pacers in Recreation 2 of the 2025 NBA Finals. Indiana surprised Oklahoma Metropolis in Recreation 1 with a 111-110 win.
Nevertheless, OKC rapidly jumped to a lead in Recreation 2 and by no means appeared again. Ultimately, OKC gained 123-107, and the sequence is tied 1-1. After Recreation 1 final Thursday, the league was criticized for the shortage of Finals decals on the courtroom. ESPN/ABC’s plan for Recreation 2 was to superimpose the Larry O’Brien Trophy and NBA Finals script brand on the courtroom. This transfer acquired much more backlash than they initially had. Including the Finals brand to the courtroom is a straightforward repair the league must make sooner or later.
ABC/ESPN was criticized for superimposing the Larry O’Brien Trophy and NBA Finals script brand in Recreation 2
The NBA added digital trophies to the courtroom then switched them out for the Finals brand 💀
What a humiliation, the league used to have aura 😭 pic.twitter.com/zQu2aqflbf
— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) June 9, 2025
After Recreation 1 of the 2025 NBA Finals, one main speaking level within the media was the shortage of branding by the league. ABC/ESPN has been the house of the NBA Finals since 2003. They’re underneath contract by way of 2036. The 2020 playoffs have been the final time the league had any sort of Finals branding on the courtroom. Moreover, the massive bodily trophy decals haven’t been used since 2009.
There was no branding by the league in Recreation 1 that will let the viewer know they have been watching a Finals recreation. To an informal viewer, this was simply one other regular-season recreation. For Recreation 2, ABC/ESPN did make a change. They digitally superimposed the Larry O’Brien Trophy and NBA Finals script brand in Recreation 2. Within the first quarter, it was the Larry O’Brien Trophy, and the second quarter had the NBA Finals script brand.
Regardless of the league attempting to please the followers, it acquired much more backlash. There have been complaints of low decision for the Larry O’Brien Trophy and that the graphic was too small. Followers identified {that a} fast minimize by the digicam would distort the picture they have been superimposing. What is going to the league do for Recreation 3 on Wednesday? They might ditch the branding altogether, like they did in Recreation 1, or attempt to enhance on their Recreation 2 graphics.