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Adam Silver Compares NBA to NFL Ahead of Thunder-Pacers Finals Matchup

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Dave Ettinger | Last updated Jun 4, 2025 10:15 PM ET

The NBA Finals is set. On Thursday, June 5, the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers will begin their battle for the rights to be the next NBA champion. Both seek their first NBA championship in their franchises' histories.

While Oklahoma City and Indiana's franchises have both been an integral part of the NBA's history for nearly six decades, they both reside in small television markets.

While the NBA's popularity continues to increase, it still pales in comparison to the NFL. The TV ratings, even for the NBA Finals, are generally dictated by the size of the markets each team resides in.

The Super Bowl in the NFL, however, is appointment TV regardless of the matchup.

Adam Silver, while making an appearance on FS1's "Breakfast Ball" on Wednesday, compared the NBA to the NFL, as it pertains to the impact of market size on TV ratings.

"If we were going into a Super Bowl and it was Packers vs. Steelers you guys would celebrate that.”

- Adam Silver on two small market teams in the Finals

( @BrkfstBallOnFS1 )

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— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 4, 2025

"If we were going into a Super Bowl and it was Packers against Steelers you guys would be celebrating that. Those would be storied franchises, we wouldn't be talking about the fact that Pittsburgh is a small market,” Silver said.

For comparison, Green Bay ranks as the smallest TV market in the NFL (No. 68). Oklahoma City ranks No. 47 and Indiana No. 25 in NBA TV markets.

Silver continued to expound on the goal of the NBA, as the hope is to create must-watch TV when it comes to NBA matchups through quality of play and marketability.

"We're going to have to go through a process of getting to the point where people are accustomed to tuning into the Finals because it's the two teams that deserve to be there and it's the best basketball. With the Super Bowl, if I asked someone if they're going to watch the Super Bowl, they wouldn't say who's playing, it's a national holiday," Silver said.

Game 1 of the NBA Finals tips off on Thursday at 8:30 p.m. EDT on ABC.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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