Why are the NBA Finals and NCAA Tournament named for the year in which they take place (usually the year in which the season ends; the 1985 Finals was for the 1984-85 season), unlike the NFL and MLB playoffs, which are named for the seasons themselves (i.e. the 1980 NFL playoffs are for the 1980 season, and the 1983 MLB playoffs and World Series are for the 1983 season)?
You do understand that the MLB season all takes place within the same calendar year, right?
As for basketball, it’s because no one cares about November and December basketball. And when you have a tournament that is nicknamed “March Madness”, it makes sense to associate the year that that particular March took place.
Excellent points! Your response answers my question very well. As for the baseball part of it, I knew that all along, and as such should have taken it into consideration. You even have a great point on that March Madness part.
Its just easier that way
The one thing that does get confusing is assigning a year to the Super Bowl. NFL playoffs typically use the first year of the season, since it begins in December. However, the 2012 Super Bowl is for the 2011-12 season. Just another reason why a lot of people will just refer to the Super Bowl’s number (i.e. Super Bowl XXIII, etc.) instead.
Saying the “1984-1985 NBA Playoffs” would give the false impression that the playoffs started in 1984, I think. If you really want to say “1984-1985” in the sentence, then you should say “the playoffs from the 1984-1985 NBA season.”
Back in the pre-Super Bowl portion of the 20th Century - which is still considered modern times by all but the NFL - the NFL season took place within the calendar year, with the championship game taking place in December. Gradually though, the season and playoffs expanded so that they straddled the calendar years, with the championship game, now called the Super Bowl, taking place in first January and now February. Rather than having a list that read like this:
NFL champions:
1964 Cleveland
1965 Green Bay
1966-67 Green Bay
1967-68 Green Bay
1968-69 NY Jets
etc.
they opted for simplicity and not technical accuracy, by just listing the year the season started.