After the Oklahoma City Thunder, Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics all finished with more than 60 wins this season, an NBA Finals matchup between two of them seemed obvious.
Oklahoma City made it through the Western Conference, but the Indiana Pacers broke through in the Eastern Conference to make their first Finals appearance since 2000. Despite the Pacers’ potent offense, the Thunder are heavy favorites to win it all.
NBA TV host, NBA on TNT reporter and former Coppin State star Stephanie Ready doesn’t believe the series will be that one-sided.
“[The Thunder] have the MVP, they have the depth, they have the defense, they checked every single box. … There is nothing wrong with that team,” Ready said on Glenn Clark Radio on June 2. “However, the Pacers have that je ne sais quoi, they are fierce. They have a chip on their shoulder. They think nobody respects them.”
Pacers lead guard Tyrese Haliburton was voted the NBA’s most overrated player by his peers in The Athletic’s anonymous player poll. That notion has fueled Indiana’s playoff run, and Haliburton’s late-game heroics have served as a constant rebuttal. The Iowa State product has averaged 18.8 points, 9.8 assists and 5.7 rebounds per game in the postseason.
“When you have a group of professionals that are good at what they do, and they have a galvanizing reason to play together and to play hard, they are very, very dangerous,” Ready said.
Indiana has knocked off the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks, but the Pacers have yet to face a defense as tough as Oklahoma City. The Thunder had the NBA’s best defensive rating by a sizable margin and allowed the third-fewest points per game.
“[The Thunder] have so many people they can throw at you. They have all-defensive-caliber players [in] like five different people,” Ready said. “They can bring them off the bench, they can double team you with them, they can set up a wall and they still have Chet [Holmgren] at the rim. They have so many different ways that they can play you defensively, and they’re all effective.”
One of those pieces is former Maryland guard Aaron Wiggins, who sports the fifth-best defensive rating on the Thunder in the postseason.
“For all you Maryland Terrapins fans, this kid has been amazing. Second-round pick, a guy that does anything for you,” Oklahoma City radio host Jim Traber said on GCR May 29.
Wiggins’ minutes slightly dipped against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference finals, but that the Thunder could afford to sit him is a testament to their depth.
The Pacers’ best shot at cracking the Thunder defense is to lean on what has made them a great team all season: high-octane transition offense. Indiana played at the seventh-highest pace during the regular season and ranks third in the playoffs so far.
“[The Pacers] play so fast, they like to get down the floor before defenses are set, so I think you’re going to see some super fast basketball from Indiana,” Ready said. “They’re going to get down there and get going.”
Beyond the Thunder being heavily favored in the Finals, ratings and viewership for an Oklahoma City-Indiana matchup have been a point of discussion. Some believe that interest in the series will be considerably low because both teams are located in smaller media markets.
“The marketing executives obviously care, the people that are selling [advertisement] time, they obviously care … but if you’re a true sports fan, give me a break,” Ready said. “I don’t want to hear it. I want the best possible matchup.”
The rise to prominence of two young stars — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Haliburton — culminating in the Finals could mark a turning point for the league. Haliburton and the Pacers have arguably been the top story of the playoffs. Gilgeous-Alexander won MVP averaging a league-high 32.7 points per game along with 6.4 assists and 5.0 rebounds a contest.
“There has to always be the passing of the torch, it has to happen. You want the game to be in good hands, and this series is exactly that,” Ready said. “You are seeing the young stars come into their own, and it’s perfect. I think it’s perfect.”
For more from Ready, listen to the full interview here:
Photo Credit: Colin Murphy/PressBox