For the first half of Game 1, the Thunder looked as if they were going to cruise to the NBA title. Their defense was suffocating, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander showed the world why he was named the MVP of the league, and Lu Dort stepped up by hitting five three-pointers to seemingly keep the Pacers at a distance. But the Pacers never faltered.

They took every shot that Oklahoma City threw at them and kept fighting. Even with the insane defensive pressure, they found a way to put the ball in the basket, and their depth shone through as all of their starters finished the game in double figures, and Obi Toppin had 17 points off the bench.

Honestly, the Thunder should've won this game. Even with the mistakes they did make, they were clearly the better team and controlled the flow of the game throughout. But, ultimately, sports are about moments. Tyrese Haliburton produced that moment, drilling a mid-range game-winner with 0.3 seconds left in the game.

Any changes the Thunder make will likely be minor, but I believe three adjustments are necessary as they look to reclaim their advantage in this series.

Although the Thunder spent most of their season without Chet Holmgren, they are noticeably better when he is on the court, both offensively and defensively. In the Thunder’s last two games of the Western Conference Finals, Holmgren scored 22 and 21 points, respectively, while playing 30+ minutes in each game. He also recorded three blocks in both matchups and made a significant impact on the boards.

However, in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Holmgren struggled, contributing only six points and one block in 24 minutes. While Oklahoma City thrived during the regular season despite Holmgren’s injury, it’s hard to imagine them winning this series if he doesn’t step up and assert himself moving forward.

Perhaps Holmgren's offensive fall-off is because of the second glaring issue that was apparent last night.

Any casual observer of the Oklahoma City Thunder knows that the biggest strength of this team is their defense. They showed that with the 25 turnovers that they forced, and even they’re amazing on ball defense throughout the night. The defense often turns into offense as it ignites their fast break attack and allows them to attack defenses that aren’t set to stop them.

But I think that the biggest weakness that the Thunder showed last night was that they’re half court offensive attack was stagnant. At times, it seemed as if their offensive attack was solely predicated on giving SGA the ball and “letting him cook”. The team took several shots that I believe were ill advised, which didn’t allow them to properly pad their lead to prevent the Pacers from another miraculous postseason comeback.

Yes, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the number one scoring option on the team and one MVP for his success as a two-way player whose a proficiency in mid range shooting is reminiscent of previous errors of NBA greats like Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony and Michael Jordan. But he cannot be your only option against the Pacers, who have proven that their offense can go pound for pound with anyone in the league.

This is primarily why I want to see Chet Holmgren more involved with the OKC offensive attack and his six points was unacceptable. But, 2025 NBA All-Star Jalen Williams had a wildly off game shooting 6-19 from the field and only hitting one three-pointer despite having 17 points.

I’m a huge proponent of defense. The mantra that defense wins championships is surely true, and we saw OKC’s amazing defense in full effect on Thursday night. But if they can’t generate better offensive possessions, and if the Thunder supporting cast can’t assist SGA, we might be in for what will ultimately become one of the biggest upsets in NBA history.

Speaking of defense, the Thunder were amazing on that side of the ball last night. They forced 25 turnovers, and in the first half, it seemed as if they had solved the Pacers' frenetic offensive attack. Despite forcing 25 turnovers, they managed to score only 11 points from them. If they had been able to capitalize more on their turnover advantage, the game wouldn’t have been close.

I think that’s an easy fix for a historic defense as OKC has proven to be with their regular season and post season dominance. But, they cannot allow those opportunities, fueled by their exceptional defense, to remain unclaimed, especially against a team that has demonstrated the resilience that the Pacers have consistently exhibited throughout the playoffs.

I’m sure that the Thunder will adjust. Mark Daigneault has proven himself to be one of the best coaches in basketball and we saw this team tested in the Western Conference semi-finals versus the Nuggets after they lost game one on a game winner by Aaron Gordon. In that series, they left no room for doubt game, two and pulled it off a wire to wire blowout victory.

Will they be able to correct their mistakes and assert their dominance over the Indiana Pacers? That’s something we have to see on Sunday night.