Here we are: Game 1 of the 2025 NBA Finals.
The Indiana Pacers (50-32) and Oklahoma City Thunder (68-14), often called ‘small-market teams,’ are playing at the apex of basketball.
Indiana advanced by defeating Milwaukee (4-1), Cleveland (4-1), and New York (4-2).
Point guard Tyrese Haliburton anchors their playmaking, leading all playoff players with 9.8 assists per game.
Forward Pascal Siakam adds 21.1 playoff points per game, while center Myles Turner ranked third in the NBA with 2.01 blocks during the regular season.
The Thunder, led by 2025 NBA MVP Shai Gilegous-Alexander’s 29.8 points per game, will be a handful, but not impossible.
Gilegous-Alexander also secured the 2025 NBA scoring title after averaging 32.7 points per game in the regular season.
Forwards Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren complement Gilegous-Alexander well, boosting their two-away appeal as a unit.
Oklahoma City dominated the regular season with the league’s best record. Their .750 playoff win percentage is identical to Indiana’s.
The Thunder defeated the Pacers 132-111 in their last regular season meeting on March 29.
Key Matchups
- Haliburton’s playmaking vs. OKC’s staunch defense
- Turner’s rim protection (2.3 playoff blocks per game) against the Thunder’s well-rounded paint attack
- Aaron Nesmith’s perimeter shooting (43.1% on 3-pointers this season) to space the floor for Indy.
- Both teams have great depth. Mathurin and Toppin will be crucial.
- The bench performance is what wins the game.
Can Indiana steal a game on the road? Can OKC hold home court like they’ve done this postseason?
Who will knock on the door at the pantheon of basketball gods first?
Game 1 of the 2025 NBA Finals tips off at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time (7:30 p.m. Central Time) on June 5 at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.
Contact Multi-Media & Senior Sports Reporter Noral Parham at 317-762-7846. Follow him on X @3Noral. Follow him on X @3Noral. For more 2025 NBA Finals coverage from the Indianapolis Recorder, click here.
Noral Parham is the multi-media & senior sports reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder, one of the oldest Black publications in the country. Parham has worked with various leagues to provide a diverse perspective in sports, including the Big Ten, Big East, IHSAA, IndyCar, MLB, NHRA, NFL, NBA, WNBA, WWE and the Olympics. Prior to joining the Recorder, Parham served as the community advocate of the MLK Center in Indianapolis and senior copywriter for an e-commerce and marketing firm in Denver.
