The NBA Finals are finally upon us to culminate what has been one of the more compelling playoffs in recent memory. The 2021 edition may not feature the staple stars like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, or Kawhi Leonard that hoops fans are accustomed to seeing on this stage at this point of the season. Instead, it will feature fresh faces such as Chris Paul, Devin Booker, and Deandre Ayton from the Phoenix Suns, and Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jrue Holiday, and Khris Middleton from the Milwaukee Bucks side. None of these players had ever reached the NBA Finals before this season, and these two franchises have just one NBA title between them (Bucks in 1971).

This NBA Finals should be a massive treat for basketball fans as the league crowns a new champion and sees a fresh protagonist rise to the top. With that, the NBA could make this Finals a little more special by bringing back some little features from the past for a more splendid fan experience that could even provide some nostalgia. Here are a number of things the NBA needs to bring back to the Finals, whether it's now or in the near future.

1. Old cursive “Finals” logo

NBA fans on Twitter have been clamoring for this to return ever since the league turned the Finals logo into a somewhat boring sans serif type font. As seen below, via SportsLogos.Net, the NBA started using this rather bland logo a few years ago for the grandest stage the league has to offer:

Definitely, the cursive logo that was used through both the mid-1980s to 1990s and the mid-2000s all the way up to the 2017 Finals had that somewhat of a big game feel to it. The cursive feature made the Finals logo stand out and signify just how much of a special and prestigious moment this would be. From the looks of it, though, the NBA will likely be going with the sans serif logo for the foreseeable future.

Based on the pattern, however, it seems like the league shakes things up every decade or so. Hopefully, they considering changing the logo sometime soon.

2. Past Finals pregame intros

From the looks of it, this seems to be the 2021 NBA Finals intro that ESPN will feature on their broadcast to hype up fans for Game 1:

Sure, it's great to put the spotlight solely on the protagonists of this year's Finals run. Nonetheless, the Finals intro from a decade ago, such as the one below from the 2010 NBA Finals between the Lakers and Celtics, just offers much more nostalgia. It takes a stroll down memory lane to reminisce the champions of the past. Perhaps the league could integrate this as well as feature the stars featured in this Finals run.

In addition, the end of the video with the “Welcome to the NBA Finals” line is just the perfect way to cap off the intro. Doesn't it just raise the hairs on your arms and give you goosebumps? Hopefully, the NBA can bring that back to give the viewers more butterflies heading into the big match:

3. Larry O'Brien Trophy logo at the center

Another thing the NBA fans have been clamoring about for the past decade is the return of the Larry O'Brien Trophy logo at center court. The last time the league incorporated this was in 2009 when the Lakers won their first of back-to-back championships.

The NBA has not featured this since and has opted to just use “The Finals” logo on each side of the court. Honestly, this current iteration isn't even that noticeable and doesn't make the Finals stand out from a visual perspective. Having that big gold trophy at the center of the court just added so much more to the viewer experience and gave a constant reminder that both teams on the floor are battling for the right to take home that championship trophy at the middle of the court.

4. Larry O'Brien Trophy logo on the players' uniforms

Sure, the jerseys of both teams still have the NBA Finals patch on their jerseys. But it has been quite a while since the league actually had the Larry OB on the jersey. Aesthetics-wise, it just looks a lot better to see that big gold trophy on the players' jerseys. In fact, the current “Finals” patch has been placed on the back of the jersey, which makes it a lot harder to notice. Yes, the Nike logo and the sponsor logos are at the front, but it might be possible to squeeze in the Larry O'Brien Trophy in there just for this occasion.