• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, Yesterday

Big sports media headlines grab our attention -- in particular with the NBA Finals and NHL Stanley Cup Finals.

Is there more to this than the obvious viewing elements -- major market teams, high-profile athletes or closely fought, intense seven-game battles?

The NBA Finals, where the New York Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs in five games, posted the best overall results in 28 years -- averaging 20.6 million Nielsen-measured viewers.

New York being the largest U.S. market and the Knicks having one of the longest reigns without winning a title in 53 years were also major factors.

And Victor Wembanyama -- the 22-year-old Spurs superstar with impressive skills and height -- was a main focus of the competition. In contrast, the Knicks have the tough, workman-like effort from its star player Jalen Brunson.

For different reasons, the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Vegas Golden Knights in a closely fought six-game series on ABC that averaged 5.2 million viewers -- the best result in seven years, and was also double the 2.55 million average audience on TNT last year.

Analysts would say it helped that the NHL Stanley Cup finals were on a broadcast network (ABC) versus a cable network (TNT).

But the overriding marketing spin comes down to what advertising brands think about sports content going forward with these high-performing results -- on live premium television, in a world of ever-expanding, on-demand entertainment streaming content.

Will all this continue to drive more historically sports-shy brands to more sporting events -- big and small -- due to their valuable engagement and immediate attention from viewers?

Are more detergents, deodorants, skin care, shampoo and soap brands interested? Consider the cost.

The average ad price for this year's NBA Finals was between $1.0 million and $1.5 million, with some late-buying premium units selling for as much as $2.3 million. The average advertising price for the Stanley Cup Final was between $250,000 and $500,00.

Perhaps the move will find more digital-first brands paying the high price tag for this kind of needed top-of-the-funnel awareness.

TV networks and streaming will need this activity -- and more -- to continue if they keep paying sharply higher sports-media rights fees.