Image Via: Yahoo Sports.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have captured the 2025 NBA Championship, defeating the Indiana Pacers in a seven-game series.
Capping off a historic season, the Thunder posted a league-best 68-14 record—the most wins in franchise history. They dominated on both ends of the court, finishing first in defensive rating and fourth in points per game.
With this title, Oklahoma City becomes the youngest team to win an NBA championship since the 1977 Portland Trail Blazers, boasting an average age of just 25 years.
Even in defeat, the Indiana Pacers have plenty to be proud of. They reached the NBA Finals despite being underdogs in every round. Four of the five teams they faced had better regular-season records, and the media reminded fans of it at every turn.
But the Pacers didn’t buy into the narrative — they used it as fuel.
Olympic gold medalist and Pacers starting guard Tyrese Haliburton was voted “most overrated” in a poll of his NBA peers. He took it personally, delivering a game-winning or game-tying shot in every round of the playoffs.
In a standout moment, Haliburton even recreated Reggie Miller’s iconic “choke” gesture during the series against the New York Knicks.
The Pacers were rolling through the playoffs, thanks in large part to head coach Rick Carlisle, who previously led Dirk Nowitzki’s 2011 Dallas Mavericks to a championship — also as underdogs.
It seemed history was poised to repeat itself, with Carlisle on track for another title and the Pacers eyeing their first championship in franchise history.
But in the first half of Game 7 against the Thunder, Tyrese Haliburton went down in visible pain and was forced to watch from the sidelines as his teammates battled on without him.
Haliburton suffered a torn right Achilles tendon, sidelining him for the rest of the game and leaving Pacers fans everywhere wondering what could have been if the injury had never happened.
The Thunder knew that, even with the Pacers losing their starting point guard, they couldn’t afford to let up — and they didn’t. Oklahoma City took care of business in Game 7, clinching the NBA championship with a 103-91 victory.
After the win, league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was named Finals MVP, averaging 30 points, six assists and five rebounds per game. Upon receiving the honor, he called teammate Jalen Williams to the stage and declared that the award was just as much Williams’ as it was his.
With the title secured, the next step was celebration — something the young Thunder squad admitted they were new to. The players fumbled with champagne bottles in the locker room, a lighthearted moment that reflected their youth and inexperience.
The celebration continued in the streets of Oklahoma City during the franchise’s first championship parade. Jalen Williams thanked fans for sticking with the team through tough times. Gilgeous-Alexander received MVP chants, Lu Dort and Chet Holmgren passed the trophy into the crowd, and Isaiah Hartenstein told reporters he hadn’t slept since the victory.
It’s safe to say the Thunder and their fans enjoyed their first NBA title — and if this talented core stays together, it likely won’t be their last.
Spartan Echo 