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2025 NBA Finals Series Preview: Indiana Pacers v. Oklahoma City Thunder
2025 NBA Finals Series Preview: Indiana Pacers v. Oklahoma City Thunder
Today is the day! The 2025 NBA Finals tips off Thursday between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers. No, nobody cares about what you think the ratings will or won’t be! We’re not league partners, we’re basketball fans … and this will be an incredibly exciting series on the court.
Without further ado, let’s jump into our series preview!
| GAME | DATE | MATCHUP | TIME (EST) | TV |
| Game 1 | Thursday, June 5 | Pacers @ Thunder | 8:30 p.m. | ABC |
| Game 2 | Sunday, June 8 | Pacers @ Thunder | 8:00 p.m. | ABC |
| Game 3 | Wednesday, June 11 | Thunder @ Pacers | 8:30 p.m. | ABC |
| Game 4 | Friday, June 13 | Thunder @ Pacers | 8:30 p.m. | ABC |
| Game 5* | Monday, June 16 | Pacers @ Thunder | 8:30 p.m. | ABC |
| Game 6* | Thursday, June 19 | Thunder @ Pacers | 8:30 p.m. | ABC |
| Game 7* | Sunday, June 22 | Pacers @ Thunder | 8:00 p.m. | ABC |
What to know about the Indiana Pacers:
Starters:
Key Reserves:
Man, what a ride it’s been for Indiana. Led by Haliburton, Indiana came out of the East with series victories over the Milwaukee Bucks, Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks. They’ve come back from multiple 20-point deficits this postseason and relentlessly apply pressure and pace that only a few teams can match (one of them being OKC). They’ve been one of the league’s most efficient offenses since the New Year with an improved defense–and they’ve proven their worth over the last several weeks.
What to know about the Oklahoma City Thunder:
Starters:
Key Reserves:
Oklahoma City joined an exclusive club of winning 80-plus games, becoming the 15th team in NBA History to accomplish that feat. They rolled through the Minnesota Thunder in the Western Conference Finals after a seven-game bout against the Denver Nuggets in the West Semis. They made life miserable for Anthony Edwards and Co., breezing their way through in five games. They have the MVP in Gilgeous-Alexander, a remarkably versatile second fiddle in J-Dub, one of the best young big men in the NBA in Holmgren plus a loaded bench.
Key Questions:
1.) Can the Pacers avoid turnovers?
Indiana has a beautifully chaotic offense that is very unpredictable on a possession-by-possession basis. They have one, maybe two set actions and then it’s all read-and-react, which Tyrese Haliburton and their collection of shot creators execute beautifully.
However, Oklahoma City’s defense is the best in the NBA at creating (live-ball) turnovers. They swarm and disrupt opposing offenses as well as any team in the modern era. In their two matchups this season, Indiana turned the ball over on less than 11 percent of their possessions. For the postseason, they’ve turned it over on just 12.7 percent of their possessions.
They must keep that number down if they want to survive. If they give away too many points in transition, this series will be over before it starts.
2.) Can Oklahoma City control pace?
Both teams will run up-and-down the floor, but the Thunder play with a more controlled pace, led by Gilgeous-Alexander. Indiana’s going to push off misses, makes, free throws, any time they get an opportunity to. Oklahoma City is the best transition defense in the NBA, but will they be able to handle a Pacers offense that will continually apply pressure? We’ll see!
Series Prediction: Thunder in 6
I think this will be a really really really good series, but I think the Thunder are a machine. They have the best player, the most depth, the best defense and have more championship experience (Caruso). Would I be surprised if Indiana won? No. But I love this Thunder team, and I think they will be too much for this very fun, albeit young, Pacers squad.
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