NBA brings back trophy at midcourt for Spurs-Knicks finals

FILE–Dwight Howard #12 of the Orlando Magic and Andrew Bynum #17 of the Los Angeles Lakers go after the opening tip-off in Game One of the 2009 NBA Finals at Staples Center on June 4, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. Stephen Dunn/Getty Images/AFP

SAN ANTONIO — It’s official: The NBA Finals logos are back at the NBA Finals.

With no fanfare other than a social media post, the NBA announced Sunday that the image of the Larry O’Brien Trophy — the one given to the winner of the finals — will be painted at midcourt for games at both the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio and Madison Square Garden in New York for this season’s title series.

Also back: the script logo for “The Finals” — to be on either side of the court. The series between the Spurs and Knicks starts Wednesday in San Antonio.

READ: NBA Finals rematch: It’s Spurs vs Knicks for the championship

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It’s the first time since the 2009 finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and Orlando Magic that the title series will feature the trophy logo at midcourt. The finals wordmark and logo last appeared on the court during the 2014 finals between the Spurs and the Miami Heat.

The league started using the finals wordmark on the court for the title round in 1989, went to a combined wordmark and trophy in 2004, then had the prominent trophy logo at midcourt from 2005 through 2009.

Fans had turned to social media in recent years to complain that the court lacked the finals flair. The league commissions alternate courts for events like NBA Cup games, and some fans wondered aloud about the lack of consistency — special courts for the in-season tournament, but no special markings for the finals.

This year’s version comes with a new twist: the center court trophy logo will be integrated with the participating team’s own branding.