Oklahoma City Thunder NBA Champions 2025!
The Oklahoma City Thunder were crowned NBA champions in 2025, achieving their first title in the franchise’s 17-year history. The 103-91 victory over the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the Finals sealed the triumph.
The game was marked by the injury of Tyrese Haliburton, a key player for the Pacers, who suffered a right leg injury in the first quarter.
After trailing 48-47 at halftime, Oklahoma City, led by a brilliant Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, had a dominant third quarter, outscoring Indiana 34-20 and taking a 13-point lead that they would maintain until the end.
Despite the Pacers’ comeback attempts, Oklahoma City managed to stay calm and secure the victory.
This triumph culminates a remarkable transformation for the Thunder, who went from winning 22 and 24 games in the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons, respectively, to leading the Western Conference in the last two seasons. After a 56-win campaign last season, they reached 68 wins this year, one of the best marks in NBA history.
This success is also the culmination of the vision of the team’s general manager, Sam Presti, who has been at the helm since the franchise’s last year in Seattle in 2007-08. Since his arrival in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder have the second-most regular season wins and the fifth-most postseason wins.
Ironically, the championship came on the same day that Kevin Durant, a fundamental member of the first Thunder team with title aspirations, was traded to the Houston Rockets.
In 2019, Presti initiated a series of moves that laid the groundwork for the current team, highlighting the arrival of Gilgeous-Alexander in the trade that sent Paul George and Kawhi Leonard to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Presti wrote a letter in the local newspaper The Oklahoman, where he outlined his vision for the future of the franchise. “As we say goodbye to the past, we have begun to chart our future,” Presti wrote. “The next great Thunder team is somewhere, but it will take time and discipline to sustain it.”
Alongside Gilgeous-Alexander came Luguentz Dort, an undrafted free agent who became a key player. In 2022, Oklahoma City added Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams, who played important roles in the postseason.
Williams had an outstanding series in the Finals, including a career-high 40 points in Game 5. Holmgren, although he didn’t have good shooting percentages, impacted the game in other ways.
With both players ready to sign long-term contract extensions, along with Gilgeous-Alexander, this could be just the beginning for a Thunder team that has only two players over 27 years old and is the second-youngest champion in NBA history.
