NBA Finals: ESPN Caps 23rd NBA Season With Tech-Fueled Productions in OKC and Indy

NBA Finals: ESPN Caps 23rd NBA Season With Tech-Fueled Productions in OKC and Indy By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.

Thursday, June 5, 2025 - 4:25 pm

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ESPN tips off its 23rd consecutive year producing the NBA Finals with ABC's broadcast of Game 1 tonight in Oklahoma City. And, after nearly a quarter century delivering games from the biggest stage in basketball, the broadcaster somehow continues to find new ways to innovate.

Among this year's highlights: the Finals debut of its new state-of-the-art Flagship mobile unit, a 52-camera complement stocked with dozens of cutting-edge new toys, and a host of AR data-visualizations that will bring a whole new level of insight to the Pacers-Thunder matchup.

ESPN will roll out more than 50 cameras in OKC and Indy for the NBA Finals, including an army of Sony systems.

However, none of this wealth of technology would be of any use if it were not for ESPN's tireless crew behind the scenes. For the ESPN operations team, the Finals mark the ultimate chapter in a grinding seven-month run that has included dozens of broadcasts and no shortage of logistical challenges.

I'm extremely proud of, and honored to, work with our resilient and caring NBA operations team, says Eddie Okuno, senior remote operations specialist, ESPN. This team always focuses on taking care of one another while executing at the highest level.

On the Court: Cameras Galore, Comprehensive Audio, and Data-Fueled AR Graphics ESPN's camera arsenal for the Finals will be nearly identical to its already robust complement for the Western Conference Finals, allowing the production team to get in sync, work out the kinks, and find their groove, according to Okuno.

Chief among the new additions this year for the WCF and Finals are a pair of Sony HDC-5500 4K UHD high-frame-rate (HFR) cameras - one on the camera side and one on the reserve side - with zoom capabilities to enhance ESPN's game coverage and documentation. These cameras help make up ESPN's complement of 16 SSMO cameras, which are a mix of Sony HDC-5500, -P50A, and -4800 systems.

Phantom Flex4K system with a Canon Zoom lens.

Also on hand is an ARRI Alexa Live Camera system with Canon 50-1000mm PL full sized sensor cinematic lens.

A Sony HDC-5500V Variable ND camera will also play a key role with the new on-demand optical unit that gives the UJ122x8.2 lens new capabilities, extending the focus range even with a fast aperture and - more importantly - providing shallow depth of field.

Other key tools include an RF Wireless Canon EOS C80 camera on DJI Ronin Gimbal (with RF courtesy of NEP Specialty Capture) to offer shallow depth of field looks, a Skycam wired aerial system (outfitted with an HDC-Sony P50 and SkyTrax data for AR/VR insertion), and a live drone outside the arena in both OKC and Indy.

ESPN has a total of 120 replay channels at its disposal courtesy of EVS 1080p XT-VIA production servers. Among the key specialty replay features are EVS XtraMotion (super-slo-mo-deblur-cinematic AI enhancements), EVS 4K UHD Zoom, and two Sony 4800 4K UHD 4x with Zoom.

On the audio side, ESPN has deployed a DPA 5100 mobile surround mic, Voyage Audio DANTE spatial mic, and Q5X Player Mic X systems on multiple players and coaches.

In terms of graphics, ESPN is utilizing five VIZRT Gen5 graphics units, two of which are AR/VR over the Skycam, drone, and RF shallow depth of field cameras. TGI Sport is providing Virtual On Court Ads as it has all season. And, although ESPN won't be producing full InsightCast alternative presentations during the Finals, the ABC broadcasts will have full access to the same data-visualization technologies including SMT Shot Distance Tracker, SMT Optics Tracking (Hot / Cold Player Tracking), Vivid 3D Shot Charts, and GRACE Dunk Score visual enhancements.

In addition to the game action, ESPN's NBA Today - as well as its Hoop Streams digital pregame show and Hoop Collective podcasts - will originate from onsite in both cities. The set in OKC is located in a suite, while the Indy set will be in the Gainbridge Fieldhouse atrium and features a jib to capture fans and energy prior to the game.

In the Compound: Flagship Has Its NBA Finals Coming Out Party in Indy Tonight marks the NBA Finals debut of Flagship, Game Creek Video's new state-of-the-art three-truck SMPTE ST 2110 mobile unit that was designed specifically to produce a Super Bowl-level show in UHD HDR. After debuting in April and working ESPN's A-game package throughout the playoffs, Flagship will now work the Finals in Indy before transitioning to Monday Night Football this fall.

GCV Flagship with its full IP ST 2110 Infrastructure, capacity, and density allows a large show like the NBA Finals with multiple customers - game, multiple studio shows, altcasts, international, world feed, NBA TV, arena feeds - more options and flexibility to easily deliver all of their feeds requested in the format they desire, explains Okuno.

Inside ESPN's 38,000 sq. ft. broadcast compound in OKC, NEP's EN1 (A, B, C, D, and E units) is handling the main game production and also supporting INET productions (ESPN Deportes, LATAM, Brazil, Australia, Netherlands). NEP's Supershooter 15 is home to the onsite studio show production as well as streaming productions (including ESPN's HoopStreams digital pregame show). Also on hand are Mobile TV Group's MU46 for the NBA World Feed and NEP's NCP2 (A and B) for NBATV's productions. This year's NBA Finals - the 23rd in which ESPN/ABC has worked with NEP - will be their final outing together.

Inside ESPN's 38,000 sq ft broadcast compound in OKC, NEP's EN1 (A, B, C, D, and E units) is handling the main game production

Our sincere and heartfelt thanks to everyone at NEP Group who ha

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2025/06/05/nba-finals-espn-caps-23rd-nba-s...
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