BREAKING: Oklahoma City Thunder Crowned NBA Champions

Joel Piton
7 days ago
3 min read

The Oklahoma City Thunder are NBA champions. In a thrilling seven-game series, the league’s first Finals to go the distance since 2016—the Thunder emerged victorious in a battle that came down to the wire. But the deciding Game 7 was marked by heartbreak for Indiana, as Tyrese Haliburton suffered a serious injury in the first quarter and had to be helped off the floor. Despite not at one hundred percent, Haliburton came into this game and gave it everything he had, but it was clearly a move that backfired. His status moving forward remains uncertain—and it’s hard not to wonder how differently this game, and this series, might have played out if the Pacers’ star had remained healthy.

It’s been a storybook season for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who now adds Finals MVP to his resume after already securing league MVP honors earlier this year. In the biggest game of his career, Shai delivered with 29 points, 12 assists, and 5 rebounds. While much of his scoring came from the free throw line, he made the right shots at the right time, and his relentless mid-range attacking style and ability to control the pace of the game helped tremendously. He remained composed under pressure, drew contact, and made the right pass when it mattered most, cementing himself as the face of this championship run.

As for the Pacers, they remarkably found themselves in the driver’s seat at halftime— even without Tyrese Haliburton. “The next 24 minutes were either going to be really good, or really bad,” Shai said after the game. Unfortunately for Indiana, it was the latter. Despite playing the first half with heart and grit, the Pacers couldn’t sustain that energy in the second. T.J. McConnell was the lone bright spot during a brutal 14-minute stretch, acting as the team’s only consistent scorer. He finished with 16 points and was a rare spark in an otherwise stagnant offense. Pascal Siakam contributed with a solid offensive showing, but not a single Pacers player cracked the 20-point mark apart from Benedict Mathurin. Andrew Nembhard did what he could to slow down Shai, holding him to just 8-of-27 shooting—but it wasn’t enough. Without Haliburton’s shot creation and playmaking to steady the ship, the Thunder’s depth and raw talent simply steamrolled Indiana in the second half.

This marks the Thunder’s second championship in franchise history—their first since 1979—and their 12-point win stands as the most lopsided Game 7 victory in the NBA Finals since the Celtics defeated the Bucks 102–87 back in 1974. For the Pacers, a magical playoff run that featured improbable comebacks in every round ends in heartbreak, as they fall just short of their first-ever NBA title. The offseason now looms with uncertainty, especially if early fears surrounding Tyrese Haliburton’s injury, which is potentially a torn Achilles, prove true, which would subsequently sideline him for the entire 2025–26 campaign.

With the Finals now complete, the league’s attention turns to the NBA Draft, set for this upcoming Wednesday. The newly crowned champion Thunder hold two first-round picks and with momentum on their side, they’ll be looking to add even more firepower. You won’t want to miss a moment, so stay locked in right here at Fans Only Sportz Network for all the latest draft buzz and offseason coverage.