NBA Finals: Oklahoma City Thunder take on Indiana Pacers in Game 1

Sports · Dennis Masinde · June 5, 2025
NBA Finals: Oklahoma City Thunder take on Indiana Pacers in Game 1
Indiana Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton (left) and Oklahoma City Thunder shooting guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (right) are the keys to victory in the 2025 NBA Finals. Getty Images/AP
In Summary

The Oklahoma City Thunder take on the Indiana Pacers as the kings of the Western and Eastern Conferences battle it out in a best-of-seven series to determine who will be the NBA champion.

Following a season-long wait to know who will be the takers of the two slots, the NBA Finals are here with us.

The Oklahoma City Thunder take on the Indiana Pacers as the kings of the Western and Eastern Conferences battle it out in a best-of-seven series to determine who will be the NBA champion.

The Boston Celtics are the defending champions.

The series begins Thursday night or Friday morning, 03:30 a.m Kenyan time.

The NBA Finals could be defined by the two star guards on display.

They are Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for the Thunder and Tyrese Haliburton for the Pacers.

Both were traded away from their first teams.

Gilgeous-Alexander was traded from the Los Angeles Clippers and Haliburton from the Sacramento Kings.

"All the moments I got, like, cut, traded, slighted, overlooked. But also all the joy, all the things that my family has comforted me in, all the life lessons, Gilgeous-Alexander said. Everything that’s turned me into the man and the human being that I am today," he was quoted by CNN.

For Haliburton too, nothing has been straightforward. His trade to Indiana allowed him to express himself, and it’s seen him turn into one of the best playmakers in the NBA.

"This is a franchise that took a chance on me, saw something that other people didn’t see in me," Haliburton said of the Pacers.

"Sometimes, I think they saw more in me than I saw in myself," Haliburton shared with CNN.

The NBA Finals begin with Game 1 on Thursday in Oklahoma City with the Thunder having home-court advantage because of their better regular-season record.

All games will be broadcast in Africa and Kenya via ESPN and Supersport.

Full NBA Finals schedule:

· Game 1: Pacers @ Thunder, Thursday at 3:30 AM.

· Game 2: Pacers @ Thunder, Sunday at 3 AM.

· Game 3: Thunder @ Pacers, June 11 at 3.30 AM.

· Game 4: Thunder @ Pacers, June 13 at 3 AM.

· Game 5 (if needed): Pacers @ Thunder, June 16 at 3.30 AM.

· Game 6 (if needed): Thunder @ Pacers, June 19 at 3.30 AM.

· Game 7 (if needed): Pacers @ Thunder, June 22 at 3 AM.

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