The NBA championship trophy was previously named after NBA founder Walter Brown. After 1984, it was named after former NBA chairman Larry O'Brien.
The Larry O'Brien NBA Championship Trophy is a trophy awarded annually by the National Basketball League (NBA) to the winning team in the NBA Finals series. The trophy was introduced in 1977 to replace the previous Walter A. Brown Trophy. The trophy continued to use the old name of the "Walter A. Brown Trophy" until the 1984 NBA Finals, when the trophy was named the "Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy" to commemorate the former NBA chairman (later known as NBA Commissioner) Larry O'Brien, who served as NBA President from 1975 to 1983. Prior to joining the NBA, Larry O'Brien served as Postmaster General of the United States during President Lyndon Baines Johnson's administration (1965-1968).