With the 2025 NBA Finals featuring two small-market teams; the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers, it was inevitable NBA Commissioner Adam Silver would face questions about TV ratings and market size. But as he made clear Thursday, he’s tired of the conversation. “It frustrates me that the first thing [fans] say is, how are the ratings? What are the ratings going to be? As opposed to, wow, you have two incredible conference finals,” Silver said during his annual Finals news conference, about an hour before Game 1 tipped off. Silver pushed back on the narrative that market size still heavily dictates success, citing how technology and global reach have leveled the playing field for smaller teams. He emphasized that the league’s $76 billion media deals which begin next seasons.  While acknowledging the ratings topic remains persistent, Silver said it reflects the NBA’s self-critical culture, one that often leans too much on perceived negatives. “It’s part of the culture in the NBA that we’re self-critical… it seeps into our coverage, quite honestly, sometimes,” he added. In short, Silver’s stance is clear: great basketball should matter more than market size or media metrics.

The Indiana Pacers’ long-awaited return to the NBA Finals hit a turbulent start Tuesday as severe weather in Oklahoma delayed their arrival in Oklahoma City by several hours. Their charter flight was diverted to Tulsa due to tornado warnings, heavy rain, and high winds across central Oklahoma. After refueling and navigating around additional storms, the team finally landed in OKC around 7 p.m. local time, approximately 3.5 hours behind schedule. While skies had cleared by their arrival, the delay came amid a chaotic weather day.  Flood watches, severe thunderstorm alerts, and a tornado spotted near Norman, just 20 miles from OKC. Airport operations in Oklahoma City were disrupted throughout the afternoon and evening. Despite the rocky journey, the Pacers will participate in NBA Finals media day on Wednesday. Game 1 is set for Thursday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder. It marks Indiana’s first Finals since 2000 and OKC’s first since 2012. As center Myles Turner put it before departure: “You spend so much time thinking about getting there… now that milestone has been achieved. It’s about doing something with the opportunity.”