Bet on Holmgren, Nembhard to win NBA Finals MVP
Target over on OKC team total in Game 5 vs. MIN
Jay Croucher and Drew Dinsick share their best bets for Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals, focusing on the over for the Oklahoma City Thunder team total vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves.
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USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
While Game 1 loss to Pacers stings, Alex Caruso believes Thunder must quickly move on
While Game 1 loss to Pacers stings, Alex Caruso believes Thunder must quickly move on The Oklahoma City Thunder heavily relied on their three-headed defensive POA monster. Lu Dort, Alex Caruso and Cason Wallace usurped Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein in the hierarchy. It wasn't the preferred result, but the plan worked. Nobody from Indiana exploded for a monster night. Instead, everybody chipped in. Caruso finished with 11 points on 3-of-8 shooting, six rebounds and two assists. He shot 1-of-4 from 3 and went 4-of-5 on free throws. He had three steals and two blocks. The Thunder didn't get the desired result. They dropped a 111-110 Game 1 loss to the Indiana Pacers, where Tyrese Haliburton's game-winner stunned the OKC crowd. The Thunder's league-best defense showed up through three quarters. They caused havoc. The Pacers were so deep in their own minds because of their ability to create turnovers that they always checked over the shoulder before an elementary entry pass. Then the fourth frame happened. "Credit to them, that's how they've played for the whole post-season. They kinda stayed true to themselves, their brand of basketball. They threw in a couple big shots down the stretch," Caruso said. "That's kinda been a key for them, too, in a lot of those games where they played till the end of the game, they might have some type of comeback and end up winning. They found a way to get enough stops." The Thunder have to shake off the shock. They'll have three days to marinate on this stunner before Game 2. This is what the NBA Finals are about. As the only NBA champion on the roster, Caruso offered some much-needed perspective that his teammates need to hear, which simultaneously probably angered OKC fans. "It counts the same as when we lost by 40 in Minnesota in the last series. Counts the same as when we lost by two or three at Denver Game 3 of that series. It's all worth one," Caruso said. "It's the silver lining of it. But at the same time, it's a loss. If we don't recognize that and feel, if it doesn't hurt right now, you're not frustrated with it, there's something wrong with you."
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Benched in NBA Finals Game 1, Isaiah Hartenstein has full trust in Mark Daigneault
Benched in NBA Finals Game 1, Isaiah Hartenstein has full trust in Mark Daigneault Before the 2025 NBA Finals finally started, Mark Daigneault threw a last-second curveball to the Indiana Pacers. He opted to start Cason Wallace over Isaiah Hartenstein. Don't let revisionist history fool you. While everybody questioned the move after their Game 1 loss, it was met with applause. Deservingly so, too. The lineup data suggested it was the right move to make. The Thunder have started double-bigs with Chet Holmgren and Hartenstein, but the stats suggested they only won those minutes by a small margin. The Holmgren at five and small-ball lineups painted a more dominant picture. Of course, both lineups have their trade-offs. With Wallace as the starter, they amped up their turnover rate but were destroyed in rebounds. Forcing 25 turnovers became null when OKC only scored 11 points off them. Meanwhile, second-chance looks gave Indiana enough life en route to Tyrese Haliburton's game-winner. The Thunder eventually went away from both centers. They played the final minutes with neither Holmgren nor Hartenstein. The result offered postgame skepticism. Fans wondered why Daigneault went away with the starting lineup that won them three rounds. But Hartenstein said he has full trust in Daigneault. The 27-year-old had a career season after wandering for most of his career. It helps that Wallace has had plenty of starting experience, too. He was OKC's unofficial sixth starter when it juggled through injuries for most of the year. "Mark does a great job of communicating, so we talked about it yesterday. I am here to do whatever is best for the team. I trust Mark and I think, again, it's worked in the past," Hartenstein said. "Caso has been amazing throughout the playoffs. He's been amazing when he started in the regular season. So I don't think that contributed to us losing the game. We had control over the game the whole game." Like most have mentioned, the Thunder's Game 1 loss to the Pacers shared parallels with their Game 1 loss to the Denver Nuggets. Both times, OKC came out rusty but held onto a double-digit comeback before a late surge by the opposition was capped off with a game-winner for Aaron Gordon and Haliburton. "It was more, again, like the Denver series, the first where we let that go. That's on us. I think we kinda slowed. We went into their hand slowing the pace down a little bit too much the last eight or six minutes," Hartenstein said. "We slowed down the pace. I think that was the biggest key that we need to just keep going on. When we have the lead, let's not slow it down. Let's put the foot on the gas." The old adage goes that a playoff series doesn't start until the road team wins. After being viewed as a lopsided matchup, the 2025 NBA Finals started with a bang. The Thunder now enter a must-win scenario in Game 2 or risk being on the verge of an all-time upset. "The Pacers have been doing an amazing job throughout the playoffs, so it wasn't something coming in that we didn't know they've come back from big leads," Hartenstein said. "We've always responded really good and we have a group of guys that respond, and we are going to be ready for the next game."
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Tyrese Haliburton, Pacers steal Game 1 against Thunder, Knicks head coach search and more All-Star changes
On this episode of Good Word with Goodwill, Vince and Steve Jones Jr. do an in-depth breakdown on Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers stealing Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Next Vince and Steve speculate what the New York Knicks are looking for in their next head coach and how they may differ or be similar to Tom Thibodeau. Advertisement Later, Vince and Steve react to the new USA vs. World format for the NBA All-Star game and discuss if this change will save the game. (2:18) Mark Daigneault changes starting lineup for Thunder (7:24) Pacers keep fighting despite turnovers (12:15) Pacers strategy to not let anyone beat them but SGA (17:46) Pacers, Tyrese Halliburton's comfort in the clutch (29:20) Knicks head coach search (41:09) Big 3's might not be done just yet (44:30) Changes to the All-Star game Tyrese Haliburton's jumper with 0.3 remaining in the fourth quarter steals Game 1 for Pacers. (Photo by) 🖥️ Watch this full episode on YouTube Check out the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at or at Yahoo Sports Podcasts
