The Oklahoma City Thunder capped off a remarkable season with a historic NBA championship on Sunday night, pulling away in the second half to secure a 103-91 victory over the Indiana Pacers in a gripping Game 7 of the NBA Finals.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander delivered a stellar performance, recording 29 points and dishing out a playoff career-high 12 assists.
His brilliance, combined with the Thunder’s relentless defense, ultimately overwhelmed a determined Pacers squad that lost their leader, Tyrese Haliburton, to a leg injury just seven minutes into the game.
Despite the setback, Indiana managed to stay competitive, carrying a narrow 48-47 lead into halftime. But the tide turned sharply in the third quarter, with Oklahoma City outscoring the Pacers 34-20 and building a lead that ballooned to 22 points in the final period.
“It doesn’t feel real, so many hours, so many moments, so many emotions, so many nights of disbelief,” said Gilgeous-Alexander, visibly emotional. “It’s crazy to know that we’re all here.
“But this group worked for it, this group put in the hours and we deserved this.”
The 26-year-old Canadian capped his dream season by adding the Finals MVP to his regular-season MVP and scoring title, becoming the first player since LeBron James in the 2012-2013 season to claim both MVP awards and a championship in the same year.
Jalen Williams stepped up with 20 points, 15 of which came in the second half, while Chet Holmgren contributed 18 points, eight rebounds, one steal, and five of the Thunder’s eight blocks.
A sold-out crowd of 18,203 at Paycom Center experienced a few anxious moments as the Pacers attempted a late push. But Indiana’s 23 turnovers, which led to 32 points for the Thunder, proved too costly in the end.
This victory marks Oklahoma City’s first NBA title since the franchise’s controversial relocation from Seattle in 2008.
The last time the franchise hoisted the trophy was in 1979, as the Seattle SuperSonics.
After falling short in Game 6, Gilgeous-Alexander admitted that Sunday’s win brought a wave of relief alongside the joy.
“Feels amazing,” he said. “So much weight off my shoulders, so much stress relieved.
“Wouldn’t want to do it with any other group in the world. Feels so good to be a champion.”
For the Pacers, the loss prolongs their wait for an NBA title. Though they were ABA champions three times in the 1970s, they have yet to win it all since joining the NBA after the ABA-NBA merger.
– Haliburton Sidelined Early –
Haliburton, who was already nursing a right calf strain before helping the Pacers force a Game 7, had scored nine points, all from beyond the arc, before collapsing on a drive attempt against Gilgeous-Alexander. His right leg gave way, and he hit the floor in visible pain and frustration, slapping the court.
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle reflected on the devastating moment.
“What happened with Tyrese, all of our hearts dropped,” he said. “He was in the locker room at halftime and he was very much a part of a group that believed that they could do this.”
Despite losing their star guard, the Pacers fought on. Andrew Nembhard’s step-back three with 4.3 seconds remaining in the second quarter gave Indiana a slim halftime edge in a first half that saw 10 lead changes.
Indiana’s hot shooting from beyond the arc (8-of-16) helped keep them ahead early, but they cooled off significantly after the break, hitting just three more triples.
The Thunder also struggled from three-point range early, but found their rhythm in the third. Gilgeous-Alexander knocked down his first triple of the night with 8:16 left in the quarter, followed by threes from Holmgren and Williams during a crucial 9-0 run that swung momentum firmly in Oklahoma City’s favor.
“We had 24 minutes to go get it, we had 24 minutes to finish our season,” Gilgeous-Alexander said, describing their halftime mentality.
Carlisle acknowledged the pivotal stretch, “That quarter was the killer,” he said. Still, he praised his team’s refusal to back down.
“There was no surrender. It was all defiant fight until the end.”
Bennedict Mathurin led Indiana with 24 points off the bench. Pascal Siakam and T.J. McConnell each chipped in 16, while Nembhard added 15.
But the Pacers, who had fought back from a sluggish 10-15 start to the season and earned admiration for their resilience, ultimately ran out of magic.