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Can SGA and the Thunder win at home? Or will the Pacers get their first NBA title with another upset?
It all comes down to this. The Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers are meeting in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals on Sunday night to determine who will raise the Larry O’Brien Trophy and stand alone as 2025 NBA champions. It will be a historic title for whoever wins. The Thunder are looking for their first championship in Oklahoma City after relocating from Seattle in 2008. The Pacers, meanwhile, have never won an NBA title. Indiana had a string of ABA championships in the 1970s but is one of 10 NBA teams that has never won the Finals. The Pacers will try to change that Sunday night.
The Thunder missed a chance to clinch the title on Thursday as their offense went completely cold in Indiana. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (30.5 PPG) and Jalen Williams (24.2 PPG) are still the two leading scorers in the series — and SGA remains the MVP favorite — but OKC was “startled” by how the Pacers defended in Game 6.
The Pacers have had an incredibly balanced offensive attack in this series. Pascal Siakam leads the team with 19.8 points per game, and a whopping eight Indiana players are averaging at least 10 points per game. Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton — who hit the game-winning buzzer-beater in Game 1 — played through a calf injury in Game 6 and will be back on the floor in Game 7.
This is the first NBA Finals Game 7 in nine years. The Cleveland Cavaliers, behind legendary plays by LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, took down the Golden State Warriors in 2016. Are we in for another memorable Game 7 tonight?
Thunder vs. Pacers: Game 7 info
Time: 8 p.m. ET | Date: Sunday, June 22, 2025
Location: Paycom Center — Oklahoma City
TV channel: ABC | Live stream: fubo (Try for free)
Odds (via betMGM): Thunder -6.5, O/U 214.5
CBS Sports will have live updates throughout Pacers-Thunder Game 7. Follow along below.
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Thunder take largest lead of the game
Jalen Williams is having a tough night — 12 points on 5 of 13 — but he just scooped in one of his patented lefty layups to give the Thunder their largest lead of the game at 11 points. Pacers coach Rick Carlisle immediately took a timeout to try and quiet the crowd and prevent this game from getting way out of hand, but the Pacers are teetering on the edge here.
Thunder hit back-to-back-to-back 3s
The Thunder have really struggled to shoot the ball this postseason, and were 13th of 16 playoff teams in 3-point % (34.1) entering tonight’s game. That trend continued in the first half, when they went 4 of 18 from behind the arc. They just drained back-to-back-to-back 3s in a minute, however, to turn a tie game into a nine-point lead.
We may look back on this run as the game-winning sequence.
Dort tosses in a rainbow, Thunder surge ahead
The Thunder’s offense has gotten stuck a number of times in this game, and did so again early in the third quarter. This time, though, they were bailed out by Lu Dort, who tossed in an absurd rainbow 3-pointer that electrified the crowd. That shot has helped the Thunder surge in front by 5.
Halftime: Pacers 48 — Thunder 47
After an entertaining start, the 20th Game 7 in NBA Finals history took an unfortunate turn when Tyrese Haliburton collapsed to the ground on a drive to the basket. He was playing with a right calf strain and appeared to tear his Achilles tendon on the same leg. The Pacers have already ruled him out for the remainder of the game with a lower leg injury.
Despite Haliburton’s early exit, the Pacers are fighting and took the lead just before halftime on a deep 3-pointer by Andrew Nembhard. The Pacers needed him to step up with Haliburton out and he’s up to nine points and four rebounds. As per usual, this has been a team effort from Indiana. Four different Pacers have scored at least eight points.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has 16 points to lead all scorers, but the Thunder have no other scorers in double figures and are shooting 4 of 18 from 3-point range.
Neither team has been in front by more than five points thus far and there have been 10 lead changes and nine ties. We could be in for another thriller.
Gilgeous-Alexander off to strong start
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is off to a strong start, and just knocked down a mid-range jumper to put give the Thunder a two-point lead and force a timeout from the Pacers. He’s up to 12 points and four assists on 4 of 8 from the field so far in what is shaping up to be an MVP-caliber performance.
Haliburton leaves with apparent Achilles injury
Tyrese Haliburton collapsed to the floor in the middle of the first quarter after attempting to drive to the basket, and immediately slapped the ground and screamed out in distress. Haliburton was playing through a right calf strain and there’s serious concern that he has torn his Achilles tendon on the same leg — a potential risk factor with that injury.
The Pacers later announced that Haliburton had suffered a lower right leg injury and would not return.
The entire Pacers team and coaching staff gathered around Haliburton on the court as the medical staff assessed the situation. He was eventually lifted to his feet but could not put any weight on his right leg as he was helped off the court.
The Pacers are going to need Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell, in particular, to step up in a major way tonight for them to have any hope of winning the first NBA title in franchise history.
Long-term, Haliburton will likely miss all of next season, which essentially eliminates the Pacers from contention at the top of the Eastern Conference. It could also alter how they approach this offseason with some big decisions to be made — most notably, Myles Turner’s free agency.
If Haliburton has indeed torn his Achilles, he will join Damian Lillard and Jayson Tatum as star players to suffer that injury during this postseason. He would also be the third Pacers player to tear their Achilles this season, along with James Wiseman and Isaiah Jackson.
Prior to Game 6, when Haliburton was questionable to play, he told reporters that he was aware of the risks.
“I just had to hear that it was OK,” Haliburton said. “That’s all I really had to hear, honestly. I know the risks, I know everything that comes with it. I just had to hear it was OK.”
Haliburton was asked if he heard that there would not be risk of further injury. “No, I didn’t hear that,” Haliburton said. “No.”
Haliburton with three early 3-pointers
Tyrese Haliburton is still battling a calf strain that occurred in Game 5, but he’s off to a strong start tonight with three quick 3-pointers to help the Pacers jump in front in the opening minutes. Haliburton making some shots early is a great sign for Indiana.
Game 7 best bets
Where to watch NBA Finals Game 7: Thunder vs. Pacers TV channel, time, odds, live stream
Sam Quinn
Carlisle: Viral bus video ‘all I’m thinking about’
Hours before Game 7 tipped off on Sunday night, a video started making the rounds on social media showing busses being painted celebrating the Thunder’s 2025 championship. The unverified video shows the Thunder (or the city of Oklahoma City) are presumably getting an early jump on celebrating a championship they haven’t yet won.
The video was getting a lot of views. One of them was from Pacers coach Rick Carlisle. It stuck with him.
“That’s all I’m thinking about right now,” Carlisle said about 90 minutes before Game 7 tipped off.
The Pacers have been underdogs this whole series, and they’re continuing to embrace the role.
Before Game 7…
Let’s catch up on the other monumental NBA news of the day. Kevin Durant is a Rocket. The Suns moved the veteran superstar just hours ahead of Pacers-Thunder Game 7, reshuffling the balance of power in the Western Conference before the 2024-25 season officially comes to a close.
Here are the winners and losers of the Durant deal:
Winners and losers of Kevin Durant trade: Good news for Rockets’ Amen Thompson, Heat and Wolves miss out
Sam Quinn
