Canadians will be watching, partly because of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He is the NBA's top scorer and likely MVP, and he plays for Oklahoma City, which definitely helps attract fans in Canada.

Basketball enthusiasts from Serbia and Greece, home countries of Denver's Nikola Jokic and Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo respectively, will be following the action. Alperen Sengun is set to command an audience for Houston games during the early hours in Turkey. Similarly, Slovenian supporters will rise early to watch Luka Doncic and the Lakers commence their playoff campaign at 2:30 a.m. local time, corresponding to 5:30 p.m. Saturday in Los Angeles. Fans in Cameroon are anticipated to tune in for Pascal Siakam and the Indiana Pacers. The reigning champions, Boston, boast international talent, including Kristaps Porzingis from Latvia and Al Horford representing the Dominican Republic.

Once again, the NBA playoffs are poised to prominently feature international stars.

In a season where the five statistical leaders hailed from five different nations — an unprecedented occurrence in the NBA — the postseason is poised to showcase a significant international presence.

"This league boasts a remarkable contingent of international players," stated NBA Commissioner Adam Silver previously this season.

By the end of the season, players who scored in the NBA were born in at least 44 different countries. For the first time ever in the NBA, players from one country other than the U.S. scored over 15,000 points together. Canadian players scored 15,588 points this season, with Gilgeous-Alexander, the first scoring champion from Canada, leading the way.

Gilgeous-Alexander is widely considered the frontrunner for this season's MVP award, a contest likely to culminate in either his or Jokic's victory. Should this transpire, it would mark the seventh consecutive year the NBA's most valuable player has hailed from outside the United States. This streak commenced with Antetokounmpo's back-to-back triumphs, followed by Jokic securing the honor in three of the subsequent four seasons, punctuated by Cameroon-born Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers claiming the award two seasons prior.

Toronto coach Darko Rajakovic stated after a game between the Raptors and Thunder this season that Shai belongs to a class of players who are unstoppable.

To put it differently, he now resembles many other international players; similarly, Jokic, Antetokounmpo, and Doncic are virtually unstoppable.

Also, this season was a first for international players: Doncic's jersey was the most popular in the NBA, meaning NBAStore.com sold more of his jerseys than anyone else's. Of course, this was helped because Doncic changed jerseys during the season when he was traded from Dallas to the Los Angeles Lakers, but it is still important.

The Slovenian player is the first international player to be number one on the most popular jerseys list. He is also the first player besides Stephen Curry or LeBron James to be in that spot in over ten years. The last player to do it was Carmelo Anthony, who will soon be in the Basketball Hall of Fame. He was with New York in the 2012-13 season.

Even though we are a small country with only two million people, our sports are amazing," said Ajsa Sivka, a fellow Slovene, after being chosen by the WNBA's Chicago Sky on Monday night. She was asked about Doncic and other top Slovenian athletes. "In any sport, we have at least one great person. I am very proud to be Slovenian.

This development coincides with a period of unprecedented commitment from the NBA towards expanding its global presence. Last month, FIBA, the sport's international governing body, and the NBA unveiled a collaborative initiative for a new European basketball league, a project that has been in development for numerous years. The initial objective is to establish a 16-team league, potentially featuring many of Europe's most prominent franchises, including Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, and Manchester City.

This NBA season witnessed an exceptional feat, with four players surpassing the 2,000-point mark, notably featuring three international stars: Gilgeous-Alexander, Jokic, and Antetokounmpo. Globally, engagement with NBA League Pass increased by six percent compared to the previous season, while France experienced unprecedented viewership figures, even in Wembanyama's absence for the final two months. Canada also achieved record-breaking NBA-related social media views this season, and league data indicates a surge in fan viewership within the Asia-Pacific region, a territory already renowned for its passion for basketball.

FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis said the numbers, which are clearly helped by the game's continued growth around the world, show that the sport is very strong at the moment.

Observing the global landscape, particularly within North America, Zagklis stated that the NBA enjoys unprecedented popularity and commercial triumph.