Pacers unveil new tournament court design for 2024 NBA Cup
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indiana Pacers will have a whole new look underfoot as they try to repeat -or improve on- one of the best stories of the team’s breakout 2023-24 season. The crew at Gainbridge Fieldhouse has installed the special tournament-only court for tipoff of the Emirates NBA Cup.
The Pacers surprised the rest of the league in the in-season tournament’s debut year, beating higher-ranked rivals to win a spot in the Championship game. Indiana fell to the Los Angeles Lakers in the title tilt, but the deep run in the tournament served notice to the rest of the league that the Pacers had improved dramatically from also-ran to contender.
As part of the rollout of the NBA Cup, each arena across the league used a highly-stylized tournament-only floor. The designs all featured a solid color covering the court, instead of the traditional ‘hardwood’ look. The Pacers’ 2023 court featuring “Indy” at center court and a shade of light blue not native to the team’s traditional color pallet.
The 2024 version again features wall-to-wall paint, but the colors are a darker blue and gold that are far more familiar to fans. The team’s current “P” logo covers center court.
The most notable feature is an outsized version of the franchise’s favorite phrase, “Boom Baby!”, in all-caps, tone-on-tone, baseline-to-baseline. It’s a nod to the enthusiastic broadcast call made famous by the late Hall of Famer, Bobby “Slick” Leonard.
You can see the court in person at least twice:
- Friday, Nov. 15, 7 p.m., Pacers vs. Miami Heat
- Friday, Nov. 29, 7 p.m., Pacers vs. Detroit Pistons
If the Pacers make it out of “Group Stage” play, they’ll advance to the second round, which starts Tuesday, Dec. 10.
The championship game is Tuesday, Dec. 17.