2025 NBA Finals Roundtable: Who is the Thunder’s biggest X-Factor?

2025 NBA Finals Roundtable: Who is the Thunder’s biggest X-Factor?

Today is the day! The 2025 NBA Finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers tip off Wednesday evening! We will be doing a four-part roundtable about our X-Factors, series predictions and more!

Without further ado, let’s jump right into our first rendition: Who will be the Thunder’s biggest X-Factor in this series? We asked the team, and here are their responses:

Jiarmani Depena:

Pick: Luguentz Dort

Luguentz Dort, who will probably be the Tyrese Haliburton matchup. While he has been a great defender, the offensive side is where I feel will have a notable impact, even if it’s just catch-and-shoot threes.

Chickster:

Pick: Chet Holmgren

Chet Holmgren has done great things so far in his young career, but now he has to play against one of the better frontcourts in the NBA in Pascal Siakam and Myles Turner. Holmgren has to be able to score efficiently and defend against both of them on every possession. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams will be consistent, but as the 3rd leading scorer on the Thunder, a lot will be riding on Chet to produce.

Anthony Miranda:

Pick: Chet Holmgren

Gilgeous-Alexander is going to get his buckets regardless. I think Holmgren will need to score upwards of 15 points every game with a few 20-point performances. Furthermore, his most important job is slowing down this Pacers offense. He will have his hands full with Siakam and Turner in the paint. Also, he will need to make life hard for Haliburton every time he wants to drive to the basket.

2025 NBA Finals: 3 Reasons Why Thunder Can Beat Pacers

James Herrick:

Pick: Jalen Williams

Williams has been a key player for the Thunder for the entire season, and that trend holds in the NBA Finals. The Thunder are a much more dangerous team when Williams is playing at his best. His offensive struggles in the Denver series are a large reason the series went to seven games. If he continues to be a serious number two option behind Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City could win a championship. Not to mention, his defensive playmaking can help stunt the Pacers offense.

Matt Hanifan:

Pick: Jalen Williams

While Haliburton and Gilgeous-Alexander rightfully headline this series, each of the team’s second-best stars–Pascal Siakam and Jalen Williams–hold a ton of weight. If Williams can continue to create havoc defensively–either Siakam or one of Indiana’s best ballhandlers–while being a consistently efficient 20-point-per game option in this series, Oklahoma City has a great chance to win this series.

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