Before I go, read all about it right here. OK – goodnight, for real this time! Well, Indiana, what can you say? These playoffs, they have left multiple markets breathless with stunning, devastating comebacks, leaving those losers unable to recover over a long series. These were franchise altering losses. Ask the Knicks. Ask the Cavs. Now, will the Thunder suffer the same fate? What are they saying to each other right now in the locker room? Absolutely brutal. The Indiana Pacers looked like getting run over in the first half, and now escape with a Game 1 victory. Somehow. Some way. Unreal. And that will do it for our live game coverage. Stick with us for more NBA Finals action, but for now, wherever you are, good morning, good afternoon and good night! The lob pass is knocked away and Indiana has pulled the same trick, AGAIN! The best team in the NBA have lost the Game 1 Finals opener in dramatic fashion, and that is a complete understatement. Haliburton, nowhere to be found for a good portion of this game, hits the winner. I would say “I can’t believe it” if I hadn’t seen it so many times before. Pacers 111-110 Thunder, 0.3 4th quarter Rick Carlisle calls a timeout. OKC will have a chance for a catch and shoot to try and win it, but it will be a longshot. Indy get a stop, then Haliburton sticks the shot to give Indy their very first lead of the game with .3 seconds remaining. Indy have done it again! Did that really just happen? They say there ball out on Siakam. No foul was mentioned. OKC have the ball and a one-point lead with 22.5 seconds remaining. Indy has one timeout, OKC two. Pacers 109-110 Thunder, 0:22.5 4th quarter Siakam blocks SGA, then Siakam has a layup on the other end. It’s a one-point game! Now Indiana are challenging a play where Siakam had the ball while falling out of bounds. So a timeout here as they review. Indy will say Siakam was fouled on that play. What a finish! Pacers 106-110 Thunder, 1:49 4th quarter Nembhard, a step back three-pointer is good! Dort misses a three, then on defense, Dort blocks Nesmith in the paint! An incredible block! Then SGA, in transition, hits a layup! Pacers 102-108 Thunder, 2:22 4th quarter Nesmith for three! It’s good! The gap closes! Pacers 99-108 Thunder, 2:46 4th quarter SGA loses the ball around the three-point line but it’s because Haliburton reached in. Indy are in the penalty so floul shots for SGA. He hits both. Lead back to nine. Pacers 99-106 Thunder, 3:07 4th quarter Haliburton, a wild drive in the paint and the shot is off. Siakam has the rebound, but misses the follow. The good news? He’s fouled by Wallace. He misses the first. He misses the second! But they call a lane violation! Oh wow! that’s helpful. Another chance from the stripe for Siakam – it’s good. It’s a seven point OKC lead approaching three minutes remaining. SGA He’s fouled and at the line. SGA hits both, he has 34. That sounds like an MVP performance to me. Lead back up to eight for Oklahoma. Pacers 98-104 Thunder, 3:24 4th quarter ”SGA the drive, SGA the finish, says Mike Breen of ESPN TV in the US. OKC lead is back to six., Pacers 98-102 Thunder, 4:15 4th quarter Nembhard misses a layup, rebound Hartenstein. On the other end, Williams misses a layup. Now Haliburton drives and hits,. Oh, there he is! Pacers 96-102 Thunder, 4:49 4th quarter After two SGA free-throws, Turner sticks a mid-range shot. All this Indy coming back and not a peep from Haliburton, Shameful. Pacers 94-98 Thunder, 5:57 4th quarter Out of the timeout, Wallace hits a layup. Then Turner gets done for charging. That’s not what Indy was looking for. But this is more like it – Toppin from three! He has 17! They get a stop and now Turner is fouled. On the inbound, Turner hits a step-back three, OFF THE GLASS! Just like he planned it! Can you believe it, it’s a four point game! Pacers 88-96 Thunder, 7:44 4th quarter Nembhard is mugged by Caruso as he drives but somehow follows through and is able to stick the landing. A free throw later, it’s a three-point play, the old fashioned way. The other end, Caruso is driving, and he’s hip checked by Toppin, shoots, falls to the floor and it’s in! How about that! He misses the foul shot though. Takes the shine off the drive some. Now Toppin from three…YES! The lead is down to 11. Ibndy get two stops and come back with a Turner three from the corner! Lead down to eight. Oh my! Here we go! Pacers 79-94 Thunder, 9:42 4th quarter Here’s Williams, all alone, off a lob pass from McConnell that he intercepted – he jams, he slams. “Largest lead of the night for Oklahoma” says Mike Breen for ESPN TV in the US. Time out Indy! Pacers 79-92 Thunder, 9:46 4th quarter Wiggins is allegedly fouled by McConnell, but it seemed like a big nothing to me. He hits one of two from the line. Mathurin, right back with an easy layup. Now Hartenstein feeds Williams for an easier layup for OKC. Trading baskets will not help Indy, but still loads of time left. Pacers 76-89 Thunder, 11:02 4th quarter So Indy with the third quarter battle by three points, but are losing the war. At least for now. Knicks fans know what they can do. Caruso starts it off for OKC with a hard move into the paint and Siakam makes him pay, sending the pesky Caruso to the line. He hits both. McConnell misses a mid-range shot, then Williams, a dribble drive, changing speeds in the paint before finishing with gusto! Just like that, the lead is back to 13. Pacers 76-85 Thunder, end 3rd quarter Siakam hits a three from the far corner and yes, it’s a six-point game! But wait! SGA comes right back and also hits a three! Wow! That is absolutely gut-wrenching for Indy. The third quarter is done, and OKC head to the fourth with a nine-point lead. Pacers 73-82 Thunder, 0:42 3rd quarter Then SGA misses a shot, Caruso gets the rebound and Joe sticks a three. And then Tomas Bryant (that’s right) hits a three of his own, and it’s back to nine! Turnovers They’ve slowed down in the second half – just three for Indy so far. Thus, Indy have outscored OKC this quarter, and so it shows you what they’re capable of. Still, to comeback tonight they will need to get some stops. Meanehile, the Thunder are challenging a Hartenstein foul, so OKC timeout as it’s reviewed. The foul on Mathurin sticks, so he shoots two and hits both. It’s a nine-point-game. That is more than doable! Pacers 68-79 Thunder, 1:34 3rd quarter Siakam makes an ill-fated drive, with a spin and a turnaround which is blocked by Dort. Then Hartenstein gobbles up an offensive rebound and slams it home. That’s NBA action right there. Pacers 66-77 Thunder, 3:00 3rd quarter Mathurin makes an incredible block on a drive by Williams. Haliburton misses a three (surprise). SGA hits a mid-range jumper. Then a layup by Toppin, who has 11, is second only to Siakam in points for Indy. That’s not a good sign by the way. Now a 24 second violation by OKC. Indy hanging around, somehow. Pacers 62-75 Thunder, 5:14 3rd quarter A Holmgren wide open dunk, and then a three from Dort. Crowd goes wild. Dort is 5-7 from downtown. The Canadian’s are crushing it tonight. ICYMI This is Haliburton thinking he won the MVP of the Eastern Conference Finals before it was given to Siakam, who was great. I am posting this because it’s ridiculous that he is nowhere to be found, again and I am angry. Pacers 55-67 Thunder, 7:01, 3rd quarter Haliburton is so tentative, giving it up as they swing it around to Turner, who is down low, makes a move and travels. Absolutely that was the right call. OKC call for time. The Thunder are up a dozen, happy as clams, trading buckets to start the third quarter. Pacers 53-65 Thunder, 8:11, 3rd quarter Now Wallace on a drive is able to hit, his first points of the night. Then Nesmith back for Indy with a three! Then Williams collects a lob pass and slams it home for OKC. Absolutely brutal. Pacers 48-61 Thunder, 9:25, 3rd quarter Siakam in the paint, a little jump hook is short – OKC, speed down the floor and SGA hits a shot from nine feet. Brutal. Pacers 48-59 Thunder, 10:34, 3rd quarter SGA and Turner trade baskets as the second half gets underway. Now Siakam is powering to the basket – the layup is no good but he’ll go to the line after he’s fouled by Williams. Siakam hits one of two free throws. Haliburton The guy is missing. Will he appear in the second half? Let’s find out right now. We’re back! What else… …but turnovers. The Pacers 19 are the most in a first half in the last quarter century, ESPN TV in the US tells its viewers. The miracle is that OKC have scored just nine points off these turnovers. And that is a bona fide miracle indeed. And where is Haliburton? He’s their engine. He must take more than five shots. The bottom line? If it isn’t for McConnell’s nine points off the bench, Indy are down 20. They should be down at least 20, surely. And it’s a bit sad because Indy are actually winning on the boards. Meanwhile, Shai has 19 on 8/18 shooting. That’s the kind of alpha aggression we need to see from Haliburton. Am I right? Pacers 45-57 Thunder, end of 2nd quarter Haliburton is stripped, then Caruso drives into the paint, puts it up, and it rolls around and around and…out! That will do it for the first half, and Indy are only down 12, which is peanuts for them. This despite 19 first half turnovers, the clear theme of the evening thus far. Pacers 45-57 Thunder, 0:27 2nd quarter SGA drives from the near sifde and uses his left hand to convert a layup, before McConnell comes right back and hits a layup. McConnell again! Wow! Back-and-forth we go, OKC running, gunning – an SGA three…is good! This game is so so fast! Pacers 37-47 Thunder, 2:05 2nd quarter Indy, so used to getting shots up quickly, suffer a 24 second violation. A possession later, they turn the ball over again – Caruso off Mathurin! But they’re saved by an ensuing Caruso charge. Dort pops a three and now the lead is up to 13, that’s the biggest lead of the game. Now McConnell hits a three, and he is really saving them – he has seven. Pacers 37-47 Thunder, 4:12 2nd quarter Turner pulls over SGA for no real reason at all, away from the ball, and that’s Indy’s 14th turnover. Maddening. Then Dort sticks a corner three and just like that, the lead is back to 10. Man, it’s tough out there. Pacers 37-41 Thunder, 4:59 2nd quarter Siakam to the hole! He hits! It’s a four-point game! Pacers 35-41 Thunder, 5:38 2nd quarter The Thunder, right out of a timeout, have two points courtesy of SGA. That’s painful. It’s not all bad though: Indy gets a stop and then Nembhard draws enough contact off Dort to get a whistle. He makes one of two from the line. Another Indy stop, but then Nembhard destroys Joe, who falls to the floor and draws a charge. Not smart basketball. But then another Indy stop. Very nice – but Nesmith can’t hit a three. Indy are missing huge opportunities here. And they’ve had enough of them! Pacers 33-39 Thunder, 7:50 2nd quarter Indiana survives a possession where they give up two offensive rebounds, then turn around and hit a three! It’s Haliburton, who I said needed to emerge just a moment ago (you may recall), and here he is with a big shot. OKC calls for time, Indy within six! Pacers 30-39 Thunder, 8:29 2nd quarter Sheppard misses a three, Turner has an offensive rebound but then loses it – OKC in transition, moving fast – Holmgren is in the paint and is body checked by Sheppard. Foul! Holmgren sticks the free throws, putting OKC by 11. Pacers 28-35 Thunder, 9:23 2nd quarter Angry Caruso comes back and extracts revenge with a bucket, and then a drive in which he is fouled by Sheppard. He hits both foul shots. But then Sheppard comes back with a three for Indy, and the OKC lead is back to seven! Indy hanging around. Pacers 25-31 Thunder, 10:33 2nd quarter Caruso destroys Siakam in the paint and can’t believe he’s being called for a foul. He wants a replay but the OKC bench knows better. Siakam hits a pair of foul shots as Indy climb to within six. Haliburton Where is Haliburton? He can’t do the Haliburton disappearing thing he does now and again, because that won’t work here. He needs to be alpha Haliburton, and right now. Nine turnovers Did I mention Indy has NINE turnovers? No, they can’t do that and beat OKC, on the road. Or anyone, anywhere, frankly. Sort it out Rick! Toppin hits a badly needed three-point shot, but then SGA comes back, drives and is fouled by Nembhard. He hits one of two. Oh, and look at this – another turnover by Indy, their ninth. This time it’s a steal by SGA off of Nesmith. The quarter is over. This can easily get away from Indiana. I think it’s going to get away from Indiana, especially if they throw the ball around willy-nilly like they have. Pacers 20-28 Thunder, 0:35, 1st quarter McConnell again, driving into the paint from the near side, shoots and is able to hit! That’s the good news. The bad news? Hartenstein dribbles to the hoop, shoots hits, abnd is fouled. He hits the free throw, largest lead of the night for OKC. Pacers 15-25 Thunder, 1:04, 1st quarter More second chance points from OKC – Hartenstein gobbles up a a missed shot and hits a layup. And that’s what he does, and can do, all night. Now the Thunder are up 10 after SGA hits mid-range from the near side! Time out on the floor! Indy are starting to look overwhelmed. Pacers 15-21 Thunder, 2:06, 1st quarter McConnell, the most annoying reserve guard ever, unless he’s on your team, drives, makes space and hits a layup. Usually he just dribbles around and passes, but this time he was able to connect. Pacers 15-19 Thunder, 2:33, 1st quarter A Tyrese Haliburton appearance – he misses a corner three. Then Indiana turn the ball over for a fifth time and OKC take advantage, Isaiah Joe hits from 15. Now Halliburton is firing from deep again and this time, he hits! But SGA answers with a three of his own, and then Toppin turns it over AGAIN! What is going on! Take care of the basketball! Richard! Richard writes that he put two USD on Indiana! I’ve really started something here. Meanwhile, it’s early, but Indy are hanging in there, despite three turnovers. Pacers 10-14 Thunder, 4:59, 1st quarter OKC collect two offensive rebounds before Obi Toppin fouls Lou Dort. Then SGA slices through the Indy D for an easy layup. The Pacers can not allow this team to dominate the offensive glass like that, and Toppin, who can jump over a skyscraper, can’t allow Lou Dort to grab to a rebound over him. Timeout Pacers. Pacers 10-12 Thunder, 5:23, 1st quarter J Williams misses a jumper and then Indy grab the board and run the clock all the way down before throwing the ball into the back court. So more slow ball from Indy, and a third turnover. Pacers 10-10 Thunder, 7:07, 1st quarter OKC force a turnover, but then Holmgren throws it away, giving the ball right back to Indy. Siakam shoots again, this time from 12 feet out, inside the paint, and gets a home roll, on the road. OKC come right back with a SGA corner three, but then Turner has a mid-range jumper and Nembhard hits from downtown! Time out OKC! We’re even, early. Pacers 3-7 Thunder, 8:29, 1st quarter Indy are slowing it down and work it down low to Siakam for an easy two. It’s wild to see Indy as the slower team. Pacers 0-7 Thunder, 10:00, 1st quarter An SGA layup, a Chet Holgren dribble and dunk, follwed by a three from Jalen Williams give OKC an early lead in their first game since 29 May. They don’t seem rusty to me! National Anthem Regular readers of my live blogs (hi mom!) know that I always like to rate the national anthem. Tonight it’s Rob Clay, a singer and pastor known locally as “Big Rob” is belting out The Star-Spangled Banner. And I can’t rate it because ESPN in the US did not carry it. So now I’m upset. It sounded like this though. Meanwhile, there was a pregame Thunderstorm and a post-storm rainbow that smiled on OKC fans as they walked from big parking lots into the arena. Is that some sort of Harbinger? Here comes tip-off! White Shirts The crowd are all wearing complimentary white shirts, provided by the team to show unity! This is a change from last round when they alternated white shirts and blue shirts by section. I hate this. It is so very lame! Who started this? I bet it was Miami! Don’t agree? You like the shirt set up? Fight me! That said, I once spent two days in OKC. There were tornado warnings, a pretty good burger, and I got pressured into shooting a 12 gauge shotgun by a real honest-to-god cowboy. Talk about action. Prediction OK, I’ve been hinting that my pick is Indy and I’m going to go through with it. I am making a big bet that Carlisle will out coach that 40-year-old whippersnapper Mark Daigneault and win in seven games. And I am willing to put my money where my mouth is. I am not really a gambling guy, but I am putting 1one US dollar on the Pacers to pull this thing off, so you know I’m in. What’s your prediction? Send it to david.lengel@theguardian.com and I will make you famous. Update: I couldn’t get the app to work so I am not betting a dollar. But I still stand behind my prediction! Fast Pace This series will be marked by young, athletic teams that furiously push the ball and seek out as many possessions as possible. It’s this pace that Indiana used to confuse and unsettle New York again and again. Their running was relentless, and their ability to score in transition, chucking long passes for easy layups after Knicks made baskets was stunning. It’s a style that works very well for Indy. The problem is that OKC can actually play just as fast, and execute just as well. They have averaged 101 possessions per game these playoffs. Indy? 98. T his is a real issue for Indy head coach Rick Carlisle because a key Indy strength is easily matched by Oklahoma. And this is why it’s so hard to imagine Indiana winning this series, and this is why Indy are +1200 to win the series in seven games. Also, don’t forget, no four seed has ever won an NBA title. Again, I have to mention, Rick Carlisle coached Dallas to what is probably the second biggest NBA Finals upset of the 21st century, with Cleveland topping the charts by overcoming a 3-1 series deficit v the 73 win Warriors. So I actually think Indy can figure out some crazy scheme to keep them in these basketball games. Personally, I can’t see Indy being completely blown away. Adam Silver The NBA’s commissioner is giving his pre-Finals presser. He mentioned the league in Africa the league helped set up in order to develop the game and talent, which is a work in progress but is a clear location for growth. “Five years from now over 40% of the youth in the world will live in Africa,” said Silver. Silver also spoke of the possibility of starting a European league that would “serve their fans better”. I am not sure what that means, the set up for European basketball is pretty good – are the NBA going to try and upend that decades old system? We’ll have to wait and see. Silver has also admitted that he’s stood up on the podium with what he thought was a fix for the All-Star Game before, but that those fixes have not worked out. This year, the game will be in the afternoon, after and before NBC’s Olympic coverage, which could help ratings, at least in theory, but won’t help any of the players care or play defense. I think I’ll pass. A question has been asked about shrinking the schedule, which is something critics of the NBA have been talking about for years. Silver says that of course, less revenue from fewer games would be an obstacle. He also says there’s no real evidence that injuries would be impacted, and that more games gives fans more opportunity to see something in person that they want to see. In short, he’s not really interested in a smaller schedule. Howdy folks and welcome to our live rolling overage of the NBA Finals. That’s right, the season that began way back in November has reached its conclusion: the Oklahoma City Thunder v the Indiana Pacers. Both teams are seeking their first legitimate NBA crown. OKC actually has one franchise title they won while located in Seattle, which does count officially but really, hell no! And the Pacers won three straight ABA titles, which count but, eh. So this is a very big deal, and biggest for Oklahoma as they’re not only chasing a title but looking to embed themselves in a core group of the best NBA teams of all time. With 68 regular season wins, we’re talking serious company here: the 1995-1996-1997 Bulls 72 then 69 wins, the 1971-1972 Lakers, 69 wins. It’s the big time. What they do not want is to wind up like the Golden State Warriors that won a record 73 games and then lost the 2015-2016 NBA Finals to LeBron’s gang. I wrote in the Guardian’s NBA playoff preview that most of the pressure was on the wide Canadian shoulders of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the now reigning MVP. Anything short of a title would fall on him – he’s the leader – and would be catastrophic. For a franchise, when you’re supposed to win, and you don’t, there’s no greater setback. So let’s be clear here – OKC is meant to win. Their guard play combined with their furious, multi-pronged, deep defensive lineups pose a myriad of issues for their opponents, as do their wings. The Thunder are as complete a team as you can get, this postseason, bulled their way through Memphis and Minnesota, and won in seven games v Denver. How did the Nuggets pull that off? In a word, Jokic. And that’s about it. Indy do not have a Jokic, and so they’re deep dogs. Don’t take it from me, take it from their All-NBA point guard Tyrese Haliburton, who admits as much. How do they beat Oklahoma? That’s a question for Rick Carlisle, who engineered an upset finals win for the 2011 Mavericks over the Miami Heat, and who engineered a Eastern Conference Finals win over the favored Knicks just a few days ago. If anyone can figure this out, it’s Rick. Against New York, he employed a scrambling, unpredictable offense that had the Knicks off balance all series. Against Oklahoma Indy will need to go absolutely crazy from three-point-land, and try to get to the line as much as they can, which is something Haliburton just doesn’t do. It’s an uphill battle for sure, but if Indiana are going to steal one on the road, Game 1 is a good place to start. OKC haven’t played since 29 May, so in theory, they should be a bit rusty. Honestly though, I’ll believe it when I see it. So, can Indiana figure out OKC and strut to a shock-the-world upset? If so a win in Game 1 would be super helpful, and you can read all about it here. We will have tip-off at 830 ET, 130 UK. We’ll have more to come – stick with us! David will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s a look at our predictions for the NBA finals: Thunder in five. They’ve been utterly dominant all season. That’s mostly been the case for the playoffs too, allowing for some Jokić magic in the second round. The Pacers have been a ton of fun to watch, have impressive depth and a rising star in Haliburton. But the Thunder are deeper, more talented and have the best player in the series – that’s a recipe for a gentleman’s sweep. Ryan Baldi Thunder in five. If the Pacers had drawn literally any other Western Conference foe, I would give them a better chance in this series. But unfortunately for Indiana, they drew, in my estimation, the far better version of themselves. Indiana is great at forcing turnovers: Oklahoma City do that better. Indiana take great care of the ball: OKC even moreso. The Thunder have the MVP, the better defense, the better bench. They have been the best team in the league at home this season, and they have home-court advantage in this series. While the Pacers’ run to the finals has been impressive all the way, and I see them winning a game, I think the Thunder will make relatively quick work of them en route to a Larry O’Brien. Claire De Lune Pacers in seven. I picked the Thunder at the start of the playoffs (flex) and my inner Dean Oliver is still inclined to think their historically good metrics will see them through. But management wants someone to make the case for Indiana so here we go. The Pacers’ blistering pace, surgical ball movement and deep rotation give them a real shot at disrupting Oklahoma City’s rhythm. Haliburton’s vision fuels an attractive, crowd-pleasing offense that doesn’t rely on isolation or volume threes. If they can turn it into a track meet while taking care of the ball like they have all year, Indiana’s chaos could outlast OKC’s control. Bryan Graham Thunder in six. Again: they’re loaded, high-energy, extremely well-coached and hungry as hell. Denver needed the world’s best player to take OKC to seven games. While the Pacers have their virtues, and a bona fide go-to guy in Halliburton, they don’t have enough to stop a team that seems like it has been on an inexorable march toward a championship since the season tipped off in October. For me, the question isn’t if Thunder will win, but whether GM Sam Presti can keep this squad together long enough to make a dynastic run for the ages. Andrew Lawrence
Author: David Lengel