Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers was set to get underway on Thursday, and one of the increasingly popular narratives making the social media rounds was that this particular finals matchup did not have any star power. During a media availability session, NBA commissioner Adam Silver pushed back on the notion that this Finals series was devoid of any stars, as per Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints.

“Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander] is an enormous star,” Silver said. “Tyrese [Haliburton] is a huge star.”

Adam Silver also admitted that the entire NBA league office needed to do a better job of marketing the new generation of stars, during the Finals between the Pacers and Thunder, and in general. Silver also remarked that stars such as LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant build their legacies as star players during the NBA Finals, suggesting that Gilgeous-Alexander and Haliburton could do the same.

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The suggestion that the NBA Finals doesn’t have any star power wasn’t the only narrative that Silver pushed back on this week. Social media has been rife with complaints over both teams coming from small markets, and that the league might be unhappy with that. Silver shot down those notions, expressing excitement over two teams hoping for their first NBA championship. The Thunder do not claim the Seattle Sonics’ history, who, in fact, did win a title in 1979.

Silver has a point in that the playoffs, and the Finals are where stars are born. Heroic performances could lift Gilgeous-Alexander and Haliburton to new heights. Gilgeous-Alexander won his first career MVP award this season while Haliburton has been one of the most explosive and impactful players during the Eastern Conference playoffs.

The Thunder hold home court in the NBA Finals before the series shifts to Indiana for Games 3 and 4.