Pacers vs. Thunder live updates: 2025 NBA Finals Game 7 start time, picks and predictions.Follow along for live updates from Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals in Oklahoma City

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Pacers vs. Thunder - what you need to know
Before a long, grueling, entertaining NBA season comes down to one final game for all the marbles, the Phoenix Suns sent shockwaves across the league Sunday by trading superstar Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets in exchange for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks and draft compensation.

For the first time in franchise history, the Indiana Pacers are within one game of an NBA title. With the Finals tied, 3-3, the Pacers and Thunder are the first teams to go to a Game 7 of the NBA Finals since the Warriors and Cavaliers in 2016. That series crowned an Eastern Conference team in the Cavs, and the Pacers hope to repeat that pattern on Sunday in Oklahoma City. 

In a series defined by defense, Indiana deploys several wrinkles intended to clog up the Thunder offense. In Game 6, the Pacers frequently double-teamed league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, leading to Oklahoma City’s worst offensive output of the postseason. 

Turnovers are also a major part of the clash between these two teams. Indiana has committed over 20 turnovers in two of its three losses, and averages just 11.5 in its most recent two wins. The only outlier game in that group is Game 1 in which the Pacers committed 25 turnovers and still came back to win the game on the road. 

Like Indiana, much of the Thunder’s pace of play relies on the creation of fast breaks via turnovers by the other team. When the Pacers cut off that flow of offense, the Thunder struggled to produce enough in the halfcourt to keep pace with Indiana’s blistering speed. Indiana averages 21 turnovers per game through the three games already played in Oklahoma City this series, and looks to dramatically decrease that number on Sunday. 

Check out our No Dunks crew's reaction to the deal here. It was quite the way to start game day with Oklahoma City hosting Indiana tonight in a winner-take-all Game 7 for the 2025 NBA title.

Follow live for the latest updates, expert analysis and exclusive access from The Athletic's team of NBA writers on the ground in Oklahoma City.
Time: 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT)
Watch: ABC
Streaming: Fubo (try for free)

NBA Finals Game 7 history: Big Game James
Pat Riley, at the 1987 Lakers championship parade, guaranteed that his team would be back celebrating another title one year later.

But six games into the 1988 Finals, that prediction was in peril. With the upstart Pistons leading the series 3-2, Game 6 at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif. was no picnic for the Lakers. Thanks to an epic performance from Isiah Thomas, who scored 25 points in the period — most of it on a sprained ankle — the Pistons held a two-point lead going into the fourth quarter.

With the Lakers down one, Bill Laimbeer fouled Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with 14 seconds left in the fourth. The Captain sank both free throws, the Pistons missed a shot, Byron Scott missed two free throws and the Pistons, who had no timeouts, couldn’t get a shot off and it was onto Game 7.

That’s where the legend of “Big Game James” Worthy was solidified. Worthy did what Magic Johnson usually did, notching a triple-double with 36 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists in the Lakers’ victory, earning Finals MVP honors along the way.

But the Pistons didn’t make it easy. Trailing by as many as 15 with 7:27 to go in the fourth, the Pistons whittled the Lakers’ lead to two late.

“This is stunning,” CBS’ Dick Stockton said as Dennis Rodman hit a hanging one-hander with a little less than three minutes to go in the game. The Pistons were able to keep it close, trailing by three. After a Lakers’ turnover and down three, Rodman rushed an ill-advised runner with 40 seconds that missed.

After the Lakers pushed the lead to 106-102, the Pistons still wouldn’t go away. Laimbeer swished a 3-pointer with six seconds to go to cut the lead to 106-105. An A.C. Green layup cemented the final margin. The game was also the last time any team has surpassed 100 points in Game 7.

Also, watch the final two seconds. Pure chaos. This is probably one of the reasons why the NBA now surrounds the court with rope in the final moments of a clinching game.Probable Starters
Pacers: G - Tyrese Haliburton, G - Andrew Nembhard, F - Aaron Nesmith,  F - Pascal Siakam, C - Myles Turner

Thunder: G - Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, G - Luguentz Dort, F - Jalen Williams, F - Chet Holmgren, C - Isaiah Hartenstein

Injury Report
Pacers: Isaiah Jackson - out (torn achilles tendon), Jarace Walker - out (right ankle sprain)

Thunder: Nikola Topic - out (left knee surgery)

Last Meeting
June 19, 2025: Indiana took a lopsided Game 6, 108-91, in which the Pacers led by as many as 31 points. 

The victory marked the Thunder’s lowest offensive output of the postseason. Oklahoma City recorded just 14 assists – eight of which were tallied in the fourth quarter, when no Thunder starters logged minutes. 

The Pacers didn’t have a stellar offensive night themselves, shooting just 41 percent from the field. They forced 21 Oklahoma City turnovers that led to 19 points, and committed just 11 of their own. 

Indiana won the margins in Game 6 – the Pacers grabbed more rebounds, created more fastbreak points, and recorded more bench points than the Thunder. Obi Toppin led the charge with 20 points off the bench, but Indiana boasted six double-figure scorers. Tyrese Haliburton played on a strained right calf and produced 14 points and five assists in just 23 minutes. Pascal Siakam notched a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds.

Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander recorded 21 points in the matchup to lead the Thunder. 

Noteworthy
The Indiana Pacers have never been within one game of an NBA title. 
The last time the Pacers played in a Game 7 was last season’s Eastern Conference semifinals with the New York Knicks. Indiana shot an NBA playoff-record 67 percent from the field in that game and won by 21 points. 
The Pacers have a 4-6 all-time record in Game 7s. Just one of those 10 matchups was at home.
Indiana has a 7-4 record on the road in these playoffs.

Pacers vs. Thunder live updates: 2025 NBA Finals Game 7 start time, picks and predictions.Follow along for live updates from Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals in Oklahoma City

🎁🎁CLICK HERE TO GET FREE NOW✔️🎁

Pacers vs. Thunder - what you need to know
Before a long, grueling, entertaining NBA season comes down to one final game for all the marbles, the Phoenix Suns sent shockwaves across the league Sunday by trading superstar Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets in exchange for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks and draft compensation.

For the first time in franchise history, the Indiana Pacers are within one game of an NBA title. With the Finals tied, 3-3, the Pacers and Thunder are the first teams to go to a Game 7 of the NBA Finals since the Warriors and Cavaliers in 2016. That series crowned an Eastern Conference team in the Cavs, and the Pacers hope to repeat that pattern on Sunday in Oklahoma City. 

In a series defined by defense, Indiana deploys several wrinkles intended to clog up the Thunder offense. In Game 6, the Pacers frequently double-teamed league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, leading to Oklahoma City’s worst offensive output of the postseason. 

Turnovers are also a major part of the clash between these two teams. Indiana has committed over 20 turnovers in two of its three losses, and averages just 11.5 in its most recent two wins. The only outlier game in that group is Game 1 in which the Pacers committed 25 turnovers and still came back to win the game on the road. 

Like Indiana, much of the Thunder’s pace of play relies on the creation of fast breaks via turnovers by the other team. When the Pacers cut off that flow of offense, the Thunder struggled to produce enough in the halfcourt to keep pace with Indiana’s blistering speed. Indiana averages 21 turnovers per game through the three games already played in Oklahoma City this series, and looks to dramatically decrease that number on Sunday. 

Check out our No Dunks crew's reaction to the deal here. It was quite the way to start game day with Oklahoma City hosting Indiana tonight in a winner-take-all Game 7 for the 2025 NBA title.

Follow live for the latest updates, expert analysis and exclusive access from The Athletic's team of NBA writers on the ground in Oklahoma City.
Time: 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT)
Watch: ABC
Streaming: Fubo (try for free)

NBA Finals Game 7 history: Big Game James
Pat Riley, at the 1987 Lakers championship parade, guaranteed that his team would be back celebrating another title one year later.

But six games into the 1988 Finals, that prediction was in peril. With the upstart Pistons leading the series 3-2, Game 6 at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif. was no picnic for the Lakers. Thanks to an epic performance from Isiah Thomas, who scored 25 points in the period — most of it on a sprained ankle — the Pistons held a two-point lead going into the fourth quarter.

With the Lakers down one, Bill Laimbeer fouled Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with 14 seconds left in the fourth. The Captain sank both free throws, the Pistons missed a shot, Byron Scott missed two free throws and the Pistons, who had no timeouts, couldn’t get a shot off and it was onto Game 7.

That’s where the legend of “Big Game James” Worthy was solidified. Worthy did what Magic Johnson usually did, notching a triple-double with 36 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists in the Lakers’ victory, earning Finals MVP honors along the way.

But the Pistons didn’t make it easy. Trailing by as many as 15 with 7:27 to go in the fourth, the Pistons whittled the Lakers’ lead to two late.

“This is stunning,” CBS’ Dick Stockton said as Dennis Rodman hit a hanging one-hander with a little less than three minutes to go in the game. The Pistons were able to keep it close, trailing by three. After a Lakers’ turnover and down three, Rodman rushed an ill-advised runner with 40 seconds that missed.

After the Lakers pushed the lead to 106-102, the Pistons still wouldn’t go away. Laimbeer swished a 3-pointer with six seconds to go to cut the lead to 106-105. An A.C. Green layup cemented the final margin. The game was also the last time any team has surpassed 100 points in Game 7.

Also, watch the final two seconds. Pure chaos. This is probably one of the reasons why the NBA now surrounds the court with rope in the final moments of a clinching game.Probable Starters
Pacers: G - Tyrese Haliburton, G - Andrew Nembhard, F - Aaron Nesmith,  F - Pascal Siakam, C - Myles Turner

Thunder: G - Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, G - Luguentz Dort, F - Jalen Williams, F - Chet Holmgren, C - Isaiah Hartenstein

Injury Report
Pacers: Isaiah Jackson - out (torn achilles tendon), Jarace Walker - out (right ankle sprain)

Thunder: Nikola Topic - out (left knee surgery)

Last Meeting
June 19, 2025: Indiana took a lopsided Game 6, 108-91, in which the Pacers led by as many as 31 points. 

The victory marked the Thunder’s lowest offensive output of the postseason. Oklahoma City recorded just 14 assists – eight of which were tallied in the fourth quarter, when no Thunder starters logged minutes. 

The Pacers didn’t have a stellar offensive night themselves, shooting just 41 percent from the field. They forced 21 Oklahoma City turnovers that led to 19 points, and committed just 11 of their own. 

Indiana won the margins in Game 6 – the Pacers grabbed more rebounds, created more fastbreak points, and recorded more bench points than the Thunder. Obi Toppin led the charge with 20 points off the bench, but Indiana boasted six double-figure scorers. Tyrese Haliburton played on a strained right calf and produced 14 points and five assists in just 23 minutes. Pascal Siakam notched a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds.

Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander recorded 21 points in the matchup to lead the Thunder. 

Noteworthy
The Indiana Pacers have never been within one game of an NBA title. 
The last time the Pacers played in a Game 7 was last season’s Eastern Conference semifinals with the New York Knicks. Indiana shot an NBA playoff-record 67 percent from the field in that game and won by 21 points. 
The Pacers have a 4-6 all-time record in Game 7s. Just one of those 10 matchups was at home.
Indiana has a 7-4 record on the road in these playoffs.