Take a look back at the East and West Finals as the Pacers and Thunder move on to the NBA Finals.
The Oklahoma City Thunder won 18 more games than the Indiana Pacers this season. That marks the largest differential for any NBA Finals matchup in the last 44 years.
But with these Finals set to tip off tonight (8:30 ET, ABC), the Thunder and Pacers are even.
Here are some numbers to know regarding both teams, as one will win the first NBA championship in franchise history …
The basics
1. The Thunder have five playoff wins by at least 25 points, tied for the most in NBA history. They’re the 12th team in the 42 years since the playoffs expanded to 16 teams to reach the Finals, having outscored their opponents by at least 10 points per game through the first three rounds. Nine of the other 11 won the championship, with one of the two exceptions being the 2016-17 Cavs (+13.6 per game), who lost to a team — the Warriors — who had a better point differential (+16.3 per game) through the conference finals.
2. Both teams have winning records in games they trailed by double-digits. The Thunder are 3-2, while the Pacers are 4-3 in games they trailed by at least 10 points.
3. The Pacers are 7-1 in games that were within five points in the last five minutes. That would be tied for the second-best clutch playoff record (minimum five clutch games played) in the 29 years for which we have play-by-play data.
4. The Pacers have scored 8.5 more transition points per game than their opponents, the best differential in the playoffs, per Synergy tracking. The Thunder have the second-best at +8.1 transition points per game.
5. The Thunder have outscored their opponents by 7.0 points per game in the restricted area, the best differential in the playoffs.
Thunder efficiency by round
| Round | Opponent | OffRtg | Rank | DefRtg | Rank | AdjO | Rank | AdjD | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First | Memphis | 117.4 | 6 | 97.6 | 1 | +4.8 | 9 | -19.7 | 1 |
| Conf. semis | Denver | 113.8 | 12 | 103.9 | 4 | -1.3 | 18 | -15.0 | 2 |
| Conf. finals | Minnesota | 117.7 | 4 | 111.7 | 13 | +6.9 | 3 | -4.1 | 13 |
| TOTAL | 115.9 | 3 | 104.7 | 1 | +2.8 | 5 | -12.8 | 1 |
OffRtg = Points scored per 100 possessions
DefRtg = Points allowed per 100 possessions
AdjO = OffRtg – opponent’s regular-season DefRtg
AdjD = DefRtg – opponent’s regular-season OffRtg
Rank = Among every team’s numbers in each series (out of 28)
Rank in totals row = Among the 16 teams
(Note: The Thunder had the best, second-best best and 13th-best series of these playoffs defensively, holding the Grizzlies, Nuggets and Wolves to 19.7, 15.0 and 4.1 fewer points per 100 possessions than they scored in the regular season, respectively. Oklahoma City has scored 2.8 more and allowed 12.8 fewer points per 100 possessions than their opponents allowed/scored in the regular season (weighted for total possessions vs. each opponent).
OKC’s offense
Take a look at this mix highlighting the Oklahoma City Thunder’s journey to the NBA Finals!
6. They’ve averaged just 13.9 seconds per possession, easily the shortest duration for any team in the playoffs, per Second Spectrum tracking. They rank sixth in ball movement (309 passes per 24 minutes of possession) and second in player movement (11.5 miles traveled per 24 minutes of possession).
7. They lead the playoffs in turnover rate, having committed just 11.8 per 100 possessions.
8. They’ve shot just 33.6% from 3-point range, the worst mark among the eight teams that advanced past the first round. It’s also the second-worst mark through three rounds for a Finals team in the last 13 years.
9. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has an assist/turnover ratio of 3.08, which would be the second-highest playoff mark (trailing only Nikola Jokić’s mark of 3.28 in 2019) for a player who’s averaged at least 25 points and six assists in 10 playoff games or more in the last 34 years. His ratio of 2.91 last year is the third highest.
OKC’s defense
10. The Thunder have forced 17.7 turnovers per 100 possessions, which would be the highest opponent rate for any playoff team in the last 10 years. Their 10.6 steals per 100 possessions in the playoffs would be the most for any team that played beyond the first round in the last 26 years. Their 20.8 deflections per game are the most for any playoff team in the 10 years for which we have hustle stats. Alex Caruso has averaged 5.2 deflections per 36 minutes, most among 119 players who’ve played at least 100 playoff minutes this year.
11. OKC is the only team that ranks in the top five in the playoffs in both opponent field goal percentage in the restricted area (62.2%, third lowest) and the percentage of their opponents’ shots that have come in the restricted area (24%, fifth lowest).
12. Only 13.6% of OKC’s opponents’ possessions, the lowest rate in the playoffs, have been in transition, according to Synergy tracking.
13. The Thunder’s opponents have taken 44.3% of their shots from 3-point range, the third-highest opponent rate in the playoffs. Their opponents have also taken 32% of their 3-point attempts from the corners, the second-highest opponent rate. The Thunder are 3-3 when their opponents have shot better than 36% from 3-point range and 9-1 (the loss was by two points on an Aaron Gordon 3-pointer) when their opponents have shot worse than 36%.
Pacers efficiency by round
| Round | Opponent | OffRtg | Rank | DefRtg | Rank | AdjO | Rank | AdjD | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First | Milwaukee | 118.0 | 3 | 111.1 | 9 | +5.3 | 5 | -4.0 | 14 |
| Conf. semis | Cleveland | 116.7 | 8 | 112.6 | 16 | +4.9 | 8 | -8.3 | 5 |
| Conf. finals | New York | 118.2 | 2 | 116.6 | 20 | +4.9 | 7 | -0.8 | 22 |
| TOTAL | 117.7 | 2 | 113.6 | 9 | +5.0 | 2 | -4.2 | 5 |
OffRtg = Points scored per 100 possessions
DefRtg = Points allowed per 100 possessions
AdjO = OffRtg – opponent’s regular-season DefRtg
AdjD = DefRtg – opponent’s regular-season OffRtg
Rank = Among every team’s numbers in each series (out of 28)
Rank in totals row = Among the 16 teams
Indiana’s offense
Take a look at this mix highlighting the Indiana Pacers’ journey to the NBA Finals!
14. The Pacers’ effective field goal percentage of 57.6% is the second-best mark for a Finals team through the conference finals in playoff history. In these playoffs, the Pacers rank fourth in field goal percentage in the paint (58.7%), first in mid-range field goal percentage (48.7%) and first in 3-point percentage (40.1%).
15. Aaron Nesmith has an effective field goal percentage of 64.2%, the best mark among 46 players with at least 100 field goal attempts in the playoffs. Myles Turner ranks fourth at 60.4%.
16. The Pacers rank second in ball movement (364 passes per 24 minutes of possession), first in player movement (11.7 miles traveled per 24 minutes of possession, first in assist percentage (66.0% of their field goals have been assisted), and first in assist/turnover ratio (2.21). Tyrese Haliburton has 39 assists to Pascal Siakam, eight more than any other player has to a single teammate in these playoffs.
17. Indiana ranks last in offensive rebounding percentage (23.8%) and second chance points (per game and per 100 possessions) in the playoffs.
18. Indiana has scored 89 points on 62 clutch possessions (143.5 per 100), the best mark for a team that’s played at least 25 clutch playoff minutes in the 29 seasons for which we have play-by-play data.
Indiana’s defense
19. It ranks 15th out of 16 playoff teams in opponent free-throw rate (32.6 attempts per 100 shots from the field). Aaron Nesmith’s 4.9 fouls per 36 minutes are the most among 95 players who’ve played at least 150 minutes in the playoffs.
20. The Pacers have allowed 1.25 points per possession on isolations, the worst mark in the playoffs, per Synergy tracking.
21. Indiana has switched just 12% of ball screens, the lowest rate in the playoffs, per Second Spectrum.
Who’s on the floor
The Pacers and Thunder each have four bench players averaging more than 10 minutes during the 2025 NBA playoffs.
22. The Pacers’ starting lineup has outscored opponents by 16.4 points per 100 possessions in its 249 minutes. The Thunder starting lineup is plus-4.7 per 100. Those marks rank second and sixth among the 11 lineups that have played at least 75 playoff minutes.
23. The Thunder have outscored their opponents by 4.2 points per 100 possessions in 201 minutes with Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein on the floor together, but are a plus-16.5 per 100 (with the much bigger difference on offense) in 453 total minutes with one of the two bigs on the floor without the other.
24. The Pacers have scored 16 more points per 100 possessions with Haliburton on the floor (120.7) than they have with him off the floor (104.7). That’s the biggest on-off differential on offense among rotation players that advanced past the conference semifinals. Siakam has the biggest differential on defense (the Pacers have allowed 11.2 fewer points per 100 possessions with him on the floor) among rotation players in the Finals.
25. The Thunder have outscored their opponents by 21.6 points per 100 possessions with Cason Wallace on the floor. That’s the best on-court mark among 137 players who’ve averaged at least 10 minutes per game in the playoffs.
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John Schuhmann is a senior stats analyst for NBA.com. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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