Yeah, last year's finals had a completely different feel to them. Every single game in the modified NBA season was played in the same venue with no live crowds (except people on Zoom or Teams or a similar, being shown from the torso up in some of the "seats"), the crowd noises and cheering were piped in and the feeling and energy just wasn't the same. That's to say nothing of the fact that people had been stuck inside their homes for months at that point - Where I lived, bars and restaurants were still only offering takeout and delivery and a 10 pm curfew was still in strict effect. Many people here were tired of TV for hours and days at a time and just weren't enthused by the NBA playoffs. While Covid-19 is still with us, somehow the playoffs feel "normal" again this year. Also, for me, it's great to see 2 teams like this in the finals who've been trying for at least a few years to make strong runs to get there, and the energy of their fans (especially Bucks fans IMO) and the fact that their entire city is seemingly going nuts in support of their team, makes it all the more enjoyable to watch.