OKCEAL Team Six Hunts Down The Haliban! | Official Thunder (#1) vs. Pacers (#4) 2025 NBA Finals Thread

[Art Barr]

Man you are right. People don’t realize how hard it is to win a chip. How hard it is to win 50 games. You have to have the coaches buy in plus a good to great locker room. Very seldom can you have bad locker room and still win.

Lakers in ‘04 is a rare team with a shytty locker room that got to the finals. I think even if Karl Malone’s knee wasn’t shot, they still would have lost.

I don’t know how OKC’s locker was during their finals run. Probably wasn’t too great with KD leaving within two years.

You can tell with Carlisle’s system like you stated, Halli could lose confidence and lose his game. There’s a bunch of young bulls and Halli doesn’t seem the type to take command. KD was the same way and look where that got him.

It will be interesting to see who wins the series. OKC better pull game out. If not, they are 95% done.

Okc needs to play two bigs.
To prey on the indy lack of depth.
at center or multiple seven footers past miles.
Then take advantage of carlisle. not starting mathurin and obi.

Then punch their foot on the gas again. They would be up three -zero. If they played real postseason basketball lineup wise. As carlisle is playing these old celt backcourt games. Ol ric had going on.
back in the day as a rook
sharing tick in comp with ainge.

Both coaches have hurt themselves with poor frontcourt position roster maintenance and starters. It is just indy has very good utility players. That when given proper time on court. Somehow happen to be ready to convert under duress.

Maybe the nba cup made the pacers gel in this manner. To give them resilience.
despite rick playing these small ball backcourt types of games.

Never thought the nba cup in season tourney result. Would galvanize a unit.
in this manner for the post season. Yet indy has used that experience.
to gel as a unit under duress. That has paid off. Despite rick carlisle playing avatar small ball backcourt games.



Art Barr

 

[Illin Degenerate]

The Pacers 25 run definitely legitimizes what The Celtics did last year. A case can be made The Pacers really fukked over that series last year

yeah they buckled losing 4th quarter leads in 3 out of those 4 games. this year theyre making teams buckle. aside from that theyre the same team theyve been. noone has been able to slow down their offense the past 2 years. the only team that outshot them the past 2 years in the playoffs were the celtics and the celtics barely did that in efg% .565 to .561. okc is either gonna have to start shooting a hell of a lot better or theyre gonna have to figure out something noone else has been able to do, slowing down this pacers offense.

 

[BrehWyatt]

I honestly cannot believe the Pacers won that game.

I thought this series would be a sweep, what is happening to OKC!

The Pacers thrive in chaotic situations, particularly where hope seems lost—snatching victory from the jaws of sure defeat, not caring how they get the points.

While some people thought Denver taught them this lesson, OKC still has issues in seizing and maintaining control down the stretch of tight games, and you HAVE to have the ability to do so against this specific Pacers team.

OKC still feels like a better team to me, but it does feel like OKC's youth is showing itself against a team with the right mix of veterans and championship pedigree. So perhaps... Indiana might be the better team for reasons not mentioned prior to the series starting.

 

[FAH1223]

 

[Big Boss]

Pacers might game 4 and people will say Thunder in 9

 

[Big Boss]

I think OKC has been favored in every game so far in this series

 

[Illin Degenerate]

While some people thought Denver taught them this lesson, OKC still has issues in seizing and maintaining control down the stretch of tight games, and you HAVE to have the ability to do so against this specific Pacers team.

OKC still feels like a better team to me, but it does feel like OKC's youth is showing itself against a team with the right mix of veterans and championship pedigree. So perhaps... Indiana might be the better team for reasons not mentioned prior to the series starting.

and denver had holes on both sides of the court that simply arent there with this indiana team. in a tight game its not going to be as easy for okc to find a matchup they can exploit on offense and on defense its not going to be as easy to force the ball into the hands of a bad shooter.

 

[Buckeye Fever]

Whats the common denominator??

Carlisle

Oh, and btw, I loved the hell out of Charlotte, NC

 

[Stone]

Something to watch going forward is Indy was lowkey targeting Shai on D down the stretch. He’s played way better in help D than on ball in this series

 

[Illin Degenerate]

I think OKC has been favored in every game so far in this series

and it probably wont change no matter what happens the rest of the series. if indiana blows them out in game 4 okc will still be favored in game 5 and if it goes to game 6 with indiana up 3-2 okc would still be favored. vegas and the majority of the betting public wont be able to wrap their heads around indiana winning this thing until it actually happens.

 

[Astroslik]

This argument that Halliburton isn’t a superstar is dumb as hell

Isn’t showing up in the playoffs in big moments consistently more important than averaging 30 in the regular sreason?
Isnt being clutch in the playoffs more important than having a great highlight reel?
Hie is the best player on his team in the finals, I don’t like this narrative

If he wins he's a bonafide superstar. Nobody mentioned him behing a superstar before the ECF, that's why people have hesitation of crowning him

 

[Astroslik]

and it probably wont change no matter what happens the rest of the series. if indiana blows them out in game 4 okc will still be favored in game 5 and if it goes to game 6 with indiana up 3-2 okc would still be favored. vegas and the majority of the betting public wont be able to wrap their heads around indiana winning this thing until it actually happens.

Easy money to bet for indiana

 

[FAH1223]

Oscar don’t look like he’s pushing 90

 

[KFBF]

Oscar don’t look like he’s pushing 90

He honestly looks younger than Greg Oden.

 

[Trojan 24]

It’s so obvious that OKC needs to go double big. It’s what won them game 2. Not sure why they aren’t leaning into it.

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