If you’re wondering who won nba final, you probably missed one of the most stressful, high-stakes Game 7s in the history of the sport. It wasn't the big-market dynasties or the usual suspects from the LeBron-era headlines. Honestly, it was a group of kids from Oklahoma.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are the reigning NBA champions.
They took down the Indiana Pacers in a grueling seven-game series that ended on June 22, 2025. Yeah, it was a matchup almost nobody predicted when the season tipped off. You had the number one seed out West going up against a Pacers squad that basically refused to die. But when the dust settled at Paycom Center, OKC was the team holding the Larry O'Brien Trophy.
The Night OKC Finally Took the Crown
It’s been a long time coming for Oklahoma City. They haven't seen a title since 1979 when they were still the Seattle SuperSonics. If you've followed the "Process" style rebuild they went through under Sam Presti, this felt like the ultimate validation.
The final score was 103-91.
But the score doesn't tell the whole story. The game was actually tight—uncomfortably tight—until the third quarter. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the man everyone calls SGA, basically put the entire city on his back. He finished with 29 points and 12 assists. Watching him play is sorta like watching a surgeon; he never looks rushed, even when three guys are trying to strip the ball.
What Happened to the Pacers?
You have to feel for Indiana. They weren't even supposed to be there, according to most experts. They knocked out the Knicks and the Cavaliers just to get a shot at the title.
The big "what if" from this series will always be Tyrese Haliburton. Early in the first quarter of Game 7, he went down with a non-contact injury. It was a torn Achilles. It was brutal to watch. He was screaming, slapping the floor—the kind of thing that makes your heart sink regardless of who you’re rooting for.
Even without their leader, the Pacers were leading 48-47 at halftime. Bennedict Mathurin came off the bench and played like a man possessed, dropping 24 points. But eventually, the talent gap and the loss of Haliburton just became too much to overcome.
Why This Win Was Historic
When people ask who won nba final, they usually expect to hear about the Lakers or the Celtics. In fact, just the year before in 2024, the Boston Celtics won their record-setting 18th title by beating the Dallas Mavericks.
The 2025 Finals were different.
- It was the first time since 2006 that both teams in the Finals were looking for their first-ever ring (at least in their current cities).
- The Thunder became the second-youngest team to ever win a title.
- SGA became the first player since Steph Curry in 2015 to win the regular season MVP and the Finals MVP in the same year.
It was also the seventh different champion in seven years. The NBA has officially entered its "parity era." There’s no more Golden State juggernaut or Heatles dynasty. It's anyone's game now.
Key Stats from the 2025 Finals Series
If you’re a numbers person, the Thunder’s dominance during the regular season made this look like it should’ve been a sweep. They won 68 games! That’s 18 more than the Pacers won.
In Game 5, Jalen Williams (or J-Dub, as the fans call him) went absolutely nuclear. He dropped 40 points, which is a playoff career-high for him. Chet Holmgren was also a massive problem for Indiana's interior offense, averaging nearly 4 blocks a game over the final three contests.
For the Pacers, Pascal Siakam was the steady hand. He averaged about 22 points throughout the series, but the Thunder's defense, led by Lu Dort, made every single bucket feel like a chore.
Misconceptions About the Thunder's Journey
A lot of casual fans think the Thunder just "got lucky" because they're young and fast. That’s kinda insulting to the work Mark Daigneault did as a coach. This team was top 5 in both offensive and defensive efficiency. They weren't just running and gunning; they were clinical.
Another thing people get wrong is the idea that the Pacers were a fluke. You don't beat a 64-win Cleveland team by accident. Indiana’s offense was actually the highest-scoring in the league during portions of the playoffs. They just ran into a defensive buzzsaw in the final four minutes of Game 7.
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Looking Ahead to the 2026 Season
As of January 2026, the Thunder are currently the favorites to do it all over again. Most Vegas sportsbooks have them at +240 to repeat.
If you want to stay ahead of the curve, keep an eye on these things:
- Haliburton's Recovery: The Pacers' future depends entirely on how Tyrese bounces back from that Achilles tear.
- The OKC Dynasty: With most of their core under 26, the Thunder could realistically dominate for the next five years.
- The Cooper Flagg Factor: The 2026 Rookie of the Year race is already heating up, and some of the teams that bottomed out are looking scary.
If you’re looking to bet on or follow the current season, the best move is to watch the Western Conference standings. The Nuggets and the Rockets are currently nipping at OKC's heels, but until someone knocks the crown off Shai's head, the title belongs to Loud City.
Go check the current injury reports before you place any futures bets for the 2026 playoffs. Rotations are changing fast this year, especially with some of the mid-season trades we've seen lately.