Thunder, Pacers set to write own chapter among Finals Game 7s
Sunday’s showdown between the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder will be the 20th Game 7 in NBA Finals history.
Game 7 of the NBA Finals. It is the most hallowed ground of professional basketball, the thrilling finale to an epic clash of two conference champions vying for the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
Oklahoma City and Indiana are now a part of that saga.
Few picked such an outcome heading into the , but the Thunder and Pacers have proven to be perfect foils for one another. Game by game, they have drawn each other’s dramatic best as the series has gone from Indiana up 2-1 to OKC up 3-2 to a winner-take-all Game 7 on Sunday ().
YOU HEARD BILL RUSSELL 🔊🔊
GAME 7. SUNDAY. 8 PM ET. ABC. pic.twitter.com/brSdFrcXMB
— NBA (@NBA) June 20, 2025
Tyrese Haliburton’s game-winning jumper seals a stunning victory for the historically clutch Pacers.
The Thunder use a first half of blistering offense and suffocating defense to keep Indiana at bay.
The Bennedict Mathurin Game.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander activates MVP mode in the 4th quarter.
The Jalen Williams Game.
Haliburton plays through injury, Pacers’ rout forces Game 7
The 2016 Finals were the last edition to go to a Game 7. The Cavaliers’ comeback from a 3-1 series deficit was the headline, led by Finals MVP LeBron James en route to securing Cleveland’s first NBA championship.
That Game 7 went down to the final possessions and featured the best block of James’ career and the biggest shot of Kyrie Irving’s career.
Check out the final 6 minutes of Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals!
This marks the 20th time an NBA Finals has reached Game 7. The longest stretch between them was the 11-year span between Knicks-Rockets in 1994 and Pistons-Spurs in 2005.
The league has seen back-to-back Finals Game 7s just three times:
The Celtics and Lakers have each played in eight total Finals Game 7s during their respective franchise histories.
Finals Game 7s are tightly contested more often than not and have been won by double-digits since 1974.
The margins of victory in previous winner-take-alls: 4, 17, 7, 1, 2, 19, 3, 2, 2, 14, 15, 6, 9, 3, 6, 7, 4, 7 and 4.
The Thunder already have a Game 7 under their belt this postseason. Oklahoma City blew past Denver, 125-93, at home in the final game of their Western Conference semifinal series. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points and OKC erased an 11-point first-half deficit and led by as many as 43.
Indiana has recent history as well. The Pacers took Game 7 on the road at New York in the 2024 Eastern Conference semifinals. Their top eight players from that 130-109 victory are still with the team.
In 2016, Cleveland became the first road team to win a Finals Game 7 since 1978 (Washington over Seattle). Overall, the home team is 15-4 in championship deciders.
The Pacers are 7-4 on the road this postseason, while the Thunder are 10-2 at home.
"It's a one-game series now."
From Best of 7.
To Best of 5.
To Best of 3.
TO BEST OF 1.Winner takes all on Sunday at 8pm/et on ABC 🏆 pic.twitter.com/K8KFKWxmwx
— NBA (@NBA) June 20, 2025
