2025 NBA Finals: Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Indiana Pacers

That 68 wins and point differential doesn’t mean crap when you look at the context

Weaker conference than past and teams that coasted up until the end more than the past. Higher seeding meant less and less this year. At the end of the regular season a lot of teams have the ability to go for 65+ (rockets 2018 is an example) but they rest and prioritize the post season. The reason I had the pacers is because I knew this (and like so many other stats that lead people astray) were taken out of context or at the least not interpreted with the correct context. They are a damn good team but are not on the level of the prior greats. And the pacers for whatever reason play extremely cohesive ball

 

I like this system. What kind of system does Ime have?

 

OKC played one 50 team in the playoffs and that was denver with 50 wins on the nose. Denver could have easily beat them with a healthier Aaron Gordon

 

... and a healthier MPJ. I wouldn't say "easily" but yeah Denver could beat them. OKC was lucky Denver was banged up and it still took them 7 games.

Before the playoffs started, I was thinking that this young OKC team needed to pay their dues for at least one more year to be a true dominant champion. It takes a whole playoffs run (and failure) for a young team to learn. They still have a bright future even if they lose this series (which is far from guaranteed). I just don't want them to be successful so soon and hope the Rockets can catch up.

 

No doubt in my mind a healthy Nuggets team would have beaten them (and probably won a second championship).

 

Clippers in 5.

 

Too bad JayDub, Chet are still a little unexperienced and greenhorns.....

Game 1 and 3 were definitely winnable.

 

The West was super competitive. Look at the records 2-8 where their records are separated by a handful of games. One team stood above them all. It absolutely is a testament of how good OKC was this season. Yes, they were not as dominant as GSW or the Rockets in the late teens, but OKC was head and shoulders above other teams this season.

Every other Western conference was essentially a 50 win team. There was little separation. And don't forget OKC choked game 1 away. If they closed out game 1, OKC wins in 5. Young team playoff jitters that they haven't shaken off this year.

 

Magic Johnson on the Pacers "You gotta speed up the game".


Ime Udoka and Fred VanVleet slow down the Game that gives a Huge Advantage to the Older Warriors.

Should've let Amen Thompson run the PG position during the Season and into the Playoffs, even Reed Sheppard, Aaron Holiday, Cam Whitmore should've played more.

 

Half Court Iso Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks.

 

The rockets were the #2 seed in the WC.

Lets take our homer hats off for a second and think about the relative competition.

As a hyperbole, midget ball can be competitive amongst midgets. That doesn't mean you can extrapolate. When you use historic metrics to cmpare OKC against past teams and say they're better amongst point differential you have to apply context. Historically speaking this has been a weaker WC overall with the teams you listed being close in strength (hence maybe more competitive in that sense) but when you have a team like Indy that is on par with prior championship teams like Detroit circa 2004 they're going to get spanked. The records do not tell the story either (for the same reason OKC's record is being overestimated), having watched more games this season than prior years I can tell you teams adopted the idea of caoasting and just getting to the playoffs thinking that would be the most important thing (as opposed to overall record and HCA). It appears that strategy was correct too.


Its why what you said and what the pundits said is so far off from what we're watching unfold. OKC is great...and overrated at the same time.

 

• They don't know how to efficiently close out yet and Caruso is only in his first year here.
• (technically if you don't count him being in the Gleague for OKC)
• The Pacers do! Execute!
• Tons of wasted possessions on Offense, can't convert FTs, half of them should have been buckets.
• Watch out if they do!

 

series tied 2-2

 

Magic aint wrong, but the real reason Shai was tired was because they made him work all the way up the court and then made him work to get the ball back, and then made him work to get the shot off. OKC has to adjust to reduce the stress. Curry had the same problem with us, but he aint young. And Golden State never really adjusted. Shai has the legs. OKC can make it easier for him.

 

19th playoff game for the Pacers, I think the 17th as an underdog. Bigger spread tonight (+6.5) than on Wednesday before their best win (+5). I get that OKC will be more desperate, but it seems like Vegas is never going to believe.

 

I also saw where they made him work on Defense

Rocket River

 

Vegas sets the point spread based on steering the betting public to a near 50% split on both sides.

So it's really the betting public that does not believe in the Pacers.

 

Vegas spread is more about how people bet than about the prediction of how the teams might play. If they sense that more people are betting on OKC, they'll move the spread toward that direction to balance the market.

edit: @A_3PO beat me to it.