The 2024/25 NBA Finals will be contested by the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers.
It’s no surprise to see the Thunder here, with many pundits and punters backing them to finish the season with the best record, which they went on to do, finishing with a 68-14 record and a +12.9 point differential the highest in NBA history!
Alternatively, no-one expected the Pacers to be here, with the Celts the preseason favourites to return to the Finals and compete for back-to-back titles, while the Cavs were the most dominant Eastern Conference team in the regular season.
Path here:
OKC’s path to the Finals saw them sweep Memphis 4-0 in the first round, claiming a historic 51-point victory in Game 1, before edging the Denver Nuggets out in a 7-game thriller in the 2nd round, then cruising past the Timberwolves 4-1 in the Western Conference Finals.
Meanwhile, the Pacers finished as the fourth seed in the East, and blew past the injury stricken Bucks 4-1 in round one of the postseason, before putting the Cavs to the sword in round two in another 4-1 landslide, then booking their place in the Finals with 4-2 series upset over the Knicks.
Key Players:
The player to watch from OKC is the 2024/25 regular season MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who averaged 32.7 points, 5 rebound, and 6.4 assists during the regular season, while going 30-6-7 in the playoffs, claiming the Western Conference Finals MVP.
While the player to watch from the Pacers is Tyrese Haliburton, averting 19-9-4 during the regular season, while upping his game in the post season, averaging 26.5 points and 12 assist in the Eastern Conference Finals, though not quite enough to claim the MVP for that series.
Tips:
Series prediction:
Oklahoma City Thunder 4-1 $3.00
Player Predictions:
Shai to average Over 33.5 for the series $1.92
Chet Holmgren most Rebounds in the Series $1.75
Haliburton to average Over 9.5 Assists for the series $2.20
Contingency Bet:
Haliburton Finals MVP $7.50
Game 1 Multi: $5.80
SGA Over 33.5
OKC -9.5
Chet 3+ Blocks