The countdown to the NBA Finals continues: Game 1 between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers awaits on Thursday night.
The Thunder swept the two head-to-head meetings between the clubs this season.
The Pacers are expected to make the 90-minute flight from Indianapolis to Oklahoma City on Tuesday afternoon, putting them in town for media day on Wednesday and some final preparations before Game 1.
Recapping the OKC-Indiana series
— Dec. 26: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scores 45 points and the Thunder erase an early double-digit deficit, pulling away in the second half to beat the Pacers 120-114. Andrew Nembhard scores 23 for Indiana, while Tyrese Haliburton is held to four points.
— March 29: Gilgeous-Alexander scores 33 and the Thunder win 132-111. Haliburton leads the Pacers with 18, and both teams have six players finish in double figures.
Stories of note
— Ashley Kerr wins a lot of titles. She's Mark Daigneault's wife
— Two teams, two paths, one destination
— Haliburton. Gilgeous-Alexander took long roads to stardom
— The Pacers are snakebitten no more
SGA is the MVP
A recap of Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s winning of the NBA MVP award.
The story: Gilgeous-Alexander tops Jokic for MVP award
The reaction: SGA tears up when talking about his wife
Steve Nash speaks: Canada’s 1st MVP thrilled to see SGA follow him
The notebook: Jokic finishes top-2 again, Giannis’ streak ends, LeBron gets votes
Betting odds
Oklahoma City (-700) is a big favorite to win the NBA title, according to BetMGM Sportsbook. Indiana's odds are set at +500.
The Thunder are an early 9.5-point favorite over Indiana for Game 1. The most likely series outcome, according to BetMGM's odds, is Thunder in five games (+200).
NBA Finals schedule
All games of the NBA Finals will be aired on ABC.
Thursday — Game 1, Indiana at Oklahoma City, 8:30 p.m. EDT
Sunday — Game 2, Indiana at Oklahoma City, 8 p.m. EDT
June 11 — Game 3, Oklahoma City at Indiana, 8:30 p.m. EDT
June 13 — Game 4, Oklahoma City at Indiana, 8:30 p.m. EDT
June 16 — Game 5, Indiana at Oklahoma City, if necessary, 8:30 p.m. EDT
June 19 — Game 6, Oklahoma City at Indiana, if necessary, 8:30 p.m. EDT
June 22 — Game 7, Indiana at Oklahoma City, if necessary, 8 p.m. EDT
(And good news: No NBA Finals games conflict with Stanley Cup Final dates!)
Key upcoming events
June 25 — NBA draft, first round.
June 26 — NBA draft, second round.
Stats of the day
— The Thunder are the 19th team in NBA history to finish a regular season with a winning percentage of .800 or better. Of the previous 18, 12 won the NBA Finals.
— The Pacers are a winning franchise again. Earlier in these playoffs, the team's all-time winning percentage — regular season and playoff games in its NBA era — went back over .500. The Pacers (2,115-2,109 all-time entering Game 1) will finish this season over .500 all-time, the first time that's been the case at season's end in five years.
Quote of the day
“We’ve seen the tough days, honestly. It was not fun to go out there and losing a game by 20 or whatever. And losing that many games in a row and all that, for me, on my end, it was more like fuel and motivation.” — Thunder forward Luguentz Dort, on the team's turnaround in recent years.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba
The Associated Press
