3 Things Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Thunder Need to Do to Avoid Losing NBA Finals

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder ranked 1st in both offense and defense in the 2024-25 regular season. That, along with their stellar all-round play, is why many basketball fans and members of the media had them defeating the Indiana Pacers to win the NBA Finals.

That belief saw many placing wagers on the Thunder, and some even felt they would sweep the Pacers in four games. Even if the East champions managed to win a game or two, all those people believed the Thunder were too strong not to win their first-ever NBA title.

Up until a few minutes left in Game 1, all those theories were making sense as the Thunder were up by 15 points. The Indiana Pacers turned the ball over 25 times in the game, and anyone who saw how sloppy and inefficient their play was would believe the home team would embarrass them.

All that changed in the final few seconds of Game 1. The Pacers brought the deficit down to one point. SGA missed a chance to extend the lead to three, and then Tyrese Haliburton dribbled up the court and nailed the game-winner.

What was mindboggling to media analysts and basketball fans was that the Indiana Pacers won despite playing horribly for 45-46 minutes. On top of that, the Oklahoma City Thunder could not win despite Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s stellar performance. This game showed that the home team needs to fix some things to avoid losing the NBA Finals.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s scoring alone won’t work

The Oklahoma City Thunder attempted 16 more field goals than the Indiana Pacers, but still lost. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 38 points, and none of the Pacers scored more than 19 points. All that effort did not result in a win. Instead, it was an embarrassment, especially when the home team turned the ball over just six times.

The most important stat of this game’s box score is in the assist column. The Pacers assisted scores 24 times, whereas the Thunder assisted each other just 13 times. Either that was the away team’s game plan from the start, or that SGA just went into a rhythm and his teammates felt it was good enough.

If they do not share the ball more, then it will be easier for the faster Pacers to pounce on their scorers. The away team did give up 22 fouls, but since the rest were not scoring, it did not matter. That lack of scoring meant the West champions were not in shooting rhythm towards the end of the game, and that is what flipped the script.

Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren were absconding

Since the Oklahoma City Thunder did not share the ball much, their players were mostly on single isolation plays. It is telling that that plan did not work out, especially with the second and third leading scorers, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, struggling to shoot efficiently.

The Pacers were extremely wary of roughing up the Thunder, which generally leads to fouls. But they did what was necessary to upset the duo’s shooting rhythm. The result, both combined for just 23 points off 27% shooting.

If the home team is to win the next game and save the NBA Finals, Williams and Holmgren have to figure out how to be aggressive and take the onus onto themselves to add some production on the board. If the Pacers manage to slow them down, they can at least be better defensively or help in playmaking.

Thunder’s late-game defense has to improve

The Oklahoma City Thunder are one of the best teams defensively. Their efforts to stop Nikola Jokic, Anthony Edwards and others has been well documented. However, when facing the Indiana Pacers, they have a unique task on their hands.

They are facing a team that relies on each other a lot more than the other superstar-laden teams do. Essentially, the Thunder are facing a version of themselves in the Pacers. Except, on a given night, one cannot figure out who their best two scorers will be.

That should force the West champions to figure out a different game plan. All their players have to play their part if they are to slow down. Most importantly, ensure the intensity is high enough when the game is close to finishing.

The Indiana Pacers have given enough proof throughout these playoffs that they can turn a losing position into a winning one within seconds. Therefore, to sum it up, the Thunder need to share the ball more, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren have to step up, and the team defense has to improve if they are to avoid losing the NBA Finals.

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