Changing of the guard? End of the dynasties? NBA isn't there yet, but Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum is thrilled to see new faces and teams emerge from the wild twists and turns of these NBA playoffs - something that he attributes to league efforts to achieve a competitive balance
THE 2025 NBA Finals is just around the corner. Excitement is in the air, tickets are selling out. Just about everything you'd expect at this time of the year.
Except the two protagonists.
Gone are traditional powerhouses that used to be staples in the finale. LeBron, Luka and the LA Lakers were tossed in the first round of the playoffs; the Warriors and Celtics a little while later. Heck, even the Denver Nuggets, champions two years ago, never got beyond the conference finals.
Instead, meeting in the best-of-seven championship series starting on Friday (Manila time) are the Oklahoma City Thunder, who last made it to the NBA Finals in the 2011-2012 season, and the Indiana Pacers, who last made it there in 2000 back when Reggie Miller was still playing and not on the broadcast panel.
The Pacers-Thunder finale serves as a fitting ending to a wild NBA playoffs that saw the traditional powers fall by the wayside one after the other - and the LeBrons and Currys yield the spotlight to youngsters Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Tyrese Haliburton, Anthony Edwards, and Jalen Brunson.
Changing of the guards?
NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum wouldn't go that far, but he's nonetheless thrilled to see new faces and less-heralded franchises making it to the world's biggest basketball stage, which he said is a testament to the league's parity.
"This matchup really reflects the parity that’s shaping today’s NBA, where competitive balance has really opened the door for new contenders," Tatum said in a conference call with international mediamen on Monday night.
"It’s still early days, but I’m really encouraged about what we’re seeing here in terms of the level of competition and really the openness of the competition," he added.
"Going into these playoffs you could have picked any number of teams that could have made it to this point, and I think that balanced competition is really, really good for fans around the world."
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The surprising twists and turns have seen the emergence of new players and, except for the Knicks, small-market franchises. Tatum said the NBA doesn't mind at all, and is in fact glad to see the league's efforts to spread the wealth of talent and balance the competitoin starting to bear fruit.
"You’re getting to see different players emerge. You’re getting to see different teams emerge, and it doesn’t necessarily mean the end of dynasties," he said. "What we’ve tried to do with the CBA is spread talent around the league and put teams in a position where, if well managed, they can compete for a championship regardless of what their market size is.
"We have seen that this season with OKC and Indiana making the Finals, and two years ago, with Denver winning the championship as well. So, at the end of the day what we sell is competition."
Tatum is more excited that at the end of this NBA Finals, and regardless how it swings, the league will be welcoming a different champion for a record seventh successive season. The lone NBA championship of OKC came in 1979, when the franchise was still based in Seattle; the Pacers franchise's three titles came in the ABA.
More importantly, interest in the NBA Finals has hardly waned.
"When you look at the parity that exists in the league ... and what we’re seeing is interest in the NBA has never been greater," Tatum said. "So, the more fans, the more teams who think that their team has a chance going into the season, we think, is better for the NBA."
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