The final series of the 2024/25 National Basketball Association (NBA) is underway with the winningest team of the season, the Oklahoma City Thunder, representing the Western Conference and the Indiana Pacers representing the Eastern Conference. And while Oklahoma City was expected to be here, Indiana finished as the fourth seed in its conference and therefore entered the finals as the dark horse.

The series is at a pivotal stage as the winner of Game 3, following a 1-1 start, has gone on to win the series 80.5 per cent of the time, and Game 4 this evening will be critical for both teams, but let’s look at how we got here.

Game 1 (Thursday, June 5, 2025): The Pacers walked into Paycom Center, Oklahoma City to start the series as the expected JustBet underdog, after getting the better of the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals, 4-2.

They were treated to the blanketing defence of the Thunder, and the hurry-up offence that had become synonymous with the Pacers this season, could not get up to speed.

On the plus side for Indiana, they were statistically better than their hosts in every category, which kept them in the game, but played almost every second of the game trailing on the scoreboard.

The Pacers hit 18 of 39 three-point shots (46. 2 per cent), compared to the Thunder’s 11 of 30 (36.7 per cent), the hosts were out-rebounded 56 to 39 and, most surprisingly, Indiana had 24 assists to Oklahoma City’s 13.

The Thunder have built a reputation, particularly in these play-offs, of sharing the ball and making the extra pass to create open shots, but not so much in Game 1. And despite a game-high 38 points from the league and Western Conference Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder surrendered the lead, for the first time in the game, on the final shot of the game, by Tyrese Haliburton, to lose 110-111, with 0.3 seconds left on the clock.

Haliburton finished with 14 points but none more important than his final two. The win wrestled home court advantage away from the Thunder and marked the first time in the NBA Finals since 1971, that a team trailing by nine points or more, with three minutes to play, rallied for a win, a record of 0-182 prior to Game 1. This result set up a critical Game 2 for the home team a few days later.

Game 2 (Sunday, June 8, 2025): Oklahoma City’s ego was knocked down a few notches after Game 1 and their season would be in serious jeopardy if Game 2 had a similar ending. The swarming defence had proved itself a few days prior, but adjustments were needed if the narrative was to change, and change it did.

There was a complete turnaround, and the Thunder got back to sharing the ball, registering 25 total assists, with 14 in the first half alone, drawing the shutters on the encounter with minutes left to play and registering the second NBA Finals win in Oklahoma City history, adding to their Game 1 win against the Miami Heat in 2012.

The dominant 123-107 win was a lot wider than the scoreline suggests, and the league MVP displayed why he was adorned as such.

Gilgeous-Alexander (SGA for short) finished with 34 points in his second finals game and combined with his Game 1 total (38), made him the player with the most points ever in his first two NBA Finals series games (72), bettering the previous record of Allen Iverson (71) in 2001, with Michael Jordan in third with 69 (1991).

Game 2 was also his 11th 30+ points and 5+ assists game for this postseason, equalling the most-ever for a single post season, with Michael Jordan doing so twice and LeBron James achieving that mark three times. SGA is the league’s top scorer this regular season (32.7 points per game) and has averaged 37.5 points per game in all four games against the Pacers this season — including two regular season games —entering Game 3.

For the Pacers, they were in an unfamiliar place, being tied 1-1 for the first time in these play-offs and also losing a Game 2 for the first time this postseason, now 3-1. They also achieved the ominous record of being the first team to lose a game by 15+ points in four different series in the same postseason.

Their ‘Mr Clutch’, Haliburton, was handcuffed to a mere five points up to the end of the third quarter — he finished with team-high 17 — and his 12 fourth-quarter points came when the wind was already knocked out of Indiana’s sails, setting up a critical Game 3 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, where the Pacers could either solidify their home court advantage or the Thunder could regain it.

Game 3 (Wednesday, June 11, 2025): The last time Indiana hosted an NBA Finals game, June 16, 2000, the Pacers beat the Los Angeles Lakers 120-87 in Game 5 to extend the series but were ousted in six games.

The Pacers were 9-0 after a loss since March 11, 2025, but were also 0-3 in Game 3’s throughout these play-offs, and they could have added to either one of those stats on Wednesday night, they chose to go with the former.

Twenty-five years in the making and this critical game was decided by an all-in defensive effort by the Pacers and an immense contribution from the bench players, particularly Bennedict Mathurin, who dropped a game-high 27 points, along with Timothy John (TJ) McConnell Jr, who had five of Indiana’s 13 steals in the game.

Indiana pushed the pace from the first whistle and never let up, playing arguably their best quarter of these play-offs in a 40-point second quarter, against the best defence in today’s NBA. With a 64-60 lead at half-time, and the fact that they have outscored the Thunder in the second half of every game in the series, the writing was on the wall from early.

And despite an 89-84 Oklahoma City lead at the end of the third quarter, they were second-best on a night when there were three Indiana scorers with 20+ points, after having none in the first two games, and the 123-107 win was sealed.

SGA has soared above rest in these play-offs, averaging 30.4 points in 14 games, prior to Wednesday night. He finished with 24 points — only three in the fourth quarter — and only four assists. As a team, the Thunder finished with 16 total assists, which pale in comparison to 24 for the Pacers.

Haliburton, with Pacer greats Reggie Miller and Mark Jackson courtside, put on a show, adding 22 points and 11 assists to the stats sheet, after combining for 31 in the first two games, 14 and 17, respectively.

Game 4 is tonight in Indiana and the Pacers have never trailed in any series this postseason. The Thunder have had six losses in these play-offs and four of them have come on the road.

Oklahoma City was also down 1-2 against the Denver Nuggets and rallied to win that series in seven games, but they can ill afford to trail 1-3 after tonight’s game as only the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers (against the Golden State Warriors), led by LeBron James, have ever overcome that deficit to win a finals series. Additionally, no finals series since then have gone seven games.

This is a tough ask for the Thunder, but if there is any team that can pull off a road win, with their backs against the wall, this Oklahoma City team fits the bill. The question is, will they?

JustBet continues to offer attractive betting options on all popular sports and events (including virtual games) as soon as they become available. Please visit one of the over 130 locations (or visit www.supremegames.com/#/prelive) for details and place your bets on the prediction of your choice for maximum winnings…… Get in the GAME!