NBA Finals Game 1 live updates, score: Indiana Pacers open series vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
The 2025 NBA Finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers tips off on Thursday from the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.
After an eventful first three rounds, the NBA season will conclude in the coming weeks, with either the Pacers winning their first NBA championship or the Thunder claiming their first title since 1979, as the Seattle SuperSonics.
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League MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shined all season and led the Thunder into the playoffs with a 68-14 regular-season record. With the Canadian star in the forefront and a deep, well-rounded cast, Oklahoma City swept the Memphis Grizzlies, came out on top after seven games against the Denver Nuggets and bested the gritty Minnesota Timberwolves in five games.
The Thunder are making their first Finals appearance since Kevin Durant, James Harden and Russell Westbrook lost to LeBron James and the Miami Heat in 2012.
While Gilgeous-Alexander basked in the MVP glory, Indiana's Tyrese Haliburton was voted the "most overrated" player by his peers in an anonymous poll from The Athletic late in the regular season. That proved to be the fuel he needed to run through the Eastern Conference. The team secured the fourth seed with a 50-32 regular-season record and went on a dragon-slaying run to their first Finals appearance since 2000.
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Along with former NBA champion and eventual Eastern Conference Finals MVP Pascal Siakam, the Pacers beat the Milwaukee Bucks and upset the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers in five games each. They then traded haymakers with the New York Knicks in a heated six-game series that produced plenty of viral moments.
Date: Thursday, June 5
Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Paycom Center | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
TV Channel: ABC
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New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
How Tyrese Haliburton and Pacers stay calm, cool and connected in the clutch
OKLAHOMA CITY — How many more times do Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers need to show us who they are for us to believe them? On Thursday night, Haliburton and the Pacers looked to be out of it. Again. Like they were in overtime in Game 5 against Milwaukee, down seven with 40 seconds left in overtime. Like they were in Game 2 against the Cavaliers in Cleveland when they were down seven with 48 seconds to go in the fourth quarter. And again, in Game 1 against the New York Knicks, when they were down 17 with a little more than six minutes to go before their epic comeback became 'The Miracle at MSG.' And now, again, in the NBA Finals, they trailed early, got within striking distance multiple times, then surrendered a run to the Oklahoma City Thunder each time. But the cardiac kids from Indiana had another fourth-quarter comeback in the tank. Haliburton hit a pull-up 2-point jumper to win it with less than a second on the clock. It was the fourth time in the playoffs that Haliburton hit a game-winning or game-tying shot. And it was the Pacers' fifth come-from-behind victory from a deficit of 15 or more points in this year's playoffs. Advertisement Before the shot, it was a quiet night for Haliburton, who finished with 14 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. But when it mattered, he made his presence known. The Pacers trailed by nine with 2 minutes, 52 seconds to go before closing the game on a 12-2 run. 'I think we're just a really resilient group,' Haliburton said. 'We do just a great job of sticking in and just settling into the game. Through the course of the game … it felt like it could get ugly. Who knows where this game is heading? I thought we did a great job of just walking them down. 'When it gets to 15, you can panic or you can talk about how do we get it to 10 and how do we get it to five and from there.' But it wasn't just Haliburton. Sure, his Pacers teammates have said they go as he goes, but as usual, it took the team as a whole to get the job done. Haliburton is the one who leads. The goal is to get the ball in his hands for the final possession. 'We got it to eight pretty fast and that gave us confidence. We kept getting stops. Myles (Turner) and Andrew (Nembhard) made play after big play down the stretch,' Haliburton said. 'Myles got a wide-open look on the wing and missed that one, but we stuck with it. Andrew was huge down the stretch. We got a big stop there and had a lot of confidence in me to make that shot. 'I don't know what you say about it. I know that this group is a resilient group, and we don't give up until it's 0.0 on the clock.' Indiana's balanced depth puts teams on their heels in a matter of minutes, and Haliburton finishes them off. 'Ultimate, ultimate confidence in himself,' Turner said about Haliburton. 'Some players will say they have it, but there are other players that show it. He's going to let you know about it, too. That's one of the things I respect about him. He's a baller, a hooper, and really just a gamer. Advertisement 'When it comes to the moments, he wants the ball. He wants to be the one to hit that shot. He doesn't shy away from the moment and (it is very) important this time of the year to have a go-to guy. He just keeps finding a way, and we keep putting the ball in the right positions. The rest is history.' Eastern Conference finals MVP Pascal Siakam was the first to score in double figures and led all Indiana scorers with 19 points. By the end of the game, the Pacers had six players in double figures, including all five starters. Nembhard, who was critical on defense and was the primary ball handler late, added 14 points. Obi Toppin hit five 3s that helped swing the game and finished with 17 points. 'That's been our thing the whole year, even at the beginning of the playoffs,' Toppin said. 'Everybody got the other team winning every single game. We just go out there and always do what we do,' Indiana had 18 more turnovers than OKC and 16 fewer field-goal attempts and still managed to win. They've shown a level of competitiveness and composure throughout this year's playoffs that should be synonymous with their identity at this point. 'We stay connected,' Nembhard said. 'We're going to play until the whistle blows. It didn't feel like we were down 20. I don't know what the deficit was, but it felt like we were just right there. 'Stuff that's done in the past is behind us at this point. We had 19 (turnovers) in the first half. Couldn't get much worse than that.' FINAL SECONDS? GAME ON THE LINE? That's Tyrese Haliburton's music 🎶 Tyrese has done it in EVERY. SINGLE. ROUND. — NBA (@NBA) June 6, 2025 That Pacers connection starts off the court. In the locker room before games, each player is involved in their pregame ritual, yet it still feels as if their rituals overlap and affect one another. Before Thursday's game, Haliburton sat in front of his locker bobbing his head as a song by Central Cee blared on the Pacers' Bluetooth speaker. With their first NBA Finals appearance looming, everyone appeared exactly the way they always do — calm yet focused. The way they are on the court. This latest historic comeback is just who they are. In their incredible comebacks against the Bucks, Cavs, Knicks and Thunder, the Pacers were all but done, with their opponents having better than a 96 percent chance to win those respective games. But when the clock hit 0:00.0, the Pacers were the ones left standing (sometimes on a scorer's table). Advertisement 'This group never gives up,' Haliburton said. 'We never believe that the game is over until it hits zero, and that's just the God's honest truth. 'That's just the confidence that we have as a group, and I think that's a big reason why this is going on.' (Photo of Aaron Nesmith and Tyrese Haliburton: Alonzo Adams / USA Today Network via Imagn Images)
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Video: South Korean broadcasters lose minds over Tyrese Haliburton's game-winning shot
Indiana guard Tyrese Haliburton leaves the court after providing another game-winning shot for the Pacers in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Thunder on Thursday, in Oklahoma City. (Julio Cortez / Associated Press) Anyone who is a fan of the Indiana Pacers or just a basketball enthusiast in general (minus those with a rooting interest in the Oklahoma City Thunder) has probably already watched Tyrese Haliburton's latest miracle shot from Thursday's Game 1 of the NBA Finals many, many times. Get ready to watch it many, many more times. Advertisement The NBA has posted video to social media of Haliburton's game-winning jumper from South Korea's broadcast of the game on SPOTV, and the announcers' call of the magical moment is insane. Read more: Pat McAfee identifies himself as the 'somebody' who 'embarrassed' John Mellencamp at Pacers-Knicks game Simply put, they lose their minds. Check it out. Don't worry if you don't speak the language — the unbridled enthusiasm coming from what sounds like a two-man broadcast booth requires no translation. Seriously, the only other person who has ever screamed in such a manner was the Who's Roger Daltry in the epic climax to the 1971 classic "Won't Get Fooled Again." Advertisement The NBA also posted a clip of the clutch shot from ABC/ESPN's coverage of the game. Play-by-play announcer Mike Breen captured the excitement of the moment as well, although with a slightly less epic delivery than his South Korean counterparts. Read more: 'Stupid idea'? Charles Barkley says 'Inside the NBA' hosts may have another show on TNT The Pacers hadn't led the entire game and trailed the heavily favored Thunder by nine points after Oklahoma City star and league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hit a pair of free throws with 2:52 remaining in the fourth quarter. But Indiana clawed back behind five points by Andrew Nembhard down the stretch to set up Haliburton's shot that lifted his team to a 111-110 win. It was the fourth time during these playoffs that Haliburton hit a shot in the final two seconds of regulation to either win the game or send it into overtime. Advertisement 'This group never gives up," Haliburton said after Game 1. 'We never believe that the game is over until it hits zero, and that's just the God's honest truth. That's just the confidence that we have as a group, and I think that's a big reason why this is going on.' Get the best, most interesting and strangest stories of the day from the L.A. sports scene and beyond from our newsletter The Sports Report. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Vikings fans no longer will be hearing the team attached to one free agent QB
Vikings fans no longer will be hearing the team attached to one free agent QB The Vikings fanbase can finally sit back in their La-Z-Boy recliners and let out a big sigh of relief while wearing their J.J. McCarthy jerseys. On Thursday, Aaron Rodgers did his best effort to make himself the news on a busy day when it was announced that he would be signing a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The former MVP and NFC North rival of the Vikings heads to Pittsburgh, hoping to extend a career that has been fledgling ever since he left Green Bay and the NFC North. For most of the offseason, there were rumblings that the Vikings and Rodgers had a common interest in establishing a relationship. Nothing ever materialized, and now nothing will as the team goes full steam ahead with their 2024 first-round draft pick, J.J. McCarthy. Rodgers going to Pittsburgh, though, does not mean he is completely off the mind of the Vikings or their fans. The Vikings will travel to Dublin, Ireland, in Week 4 to face off against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Ironically, it will mark the second straight year the Vikings and Rodgers will face off on the continent of Europe. Last year, they played each other in London when the former MVP was a member of the Jets.
