The Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder face off in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday, June 5. The Thunder are heavy favorites to win the series, but the Pacers have shown they can compete with top teams.
Indiana ended its magical run against the Knicks with a 4-2 series win at home, beating both Milwaukee and Cleveland in five games each. The team will look to carry this momentum into the finals.
On the other hand, Oklahoma City won both meetings versus Indiana this season by large margins of 6 points and 21 points. Chet Holmgren did not play in either meeting this season, but Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 33 and 45 points on the Pacers with 8 assists and 7 rebounds in each game.
For Game 1, the odds are heavily tilted towards Oklahoma City. The Thunder are -410 to win, while Indiana is +320. The spread favors Oklahoma City by 9 points.
Our expert picks include Shai Gilgeous-Alexander over 12.5 assists and rebounds (-115) from Brad Thomas (@MrBradThomas), and a sprinkle on SGA (+500) and Jalen Williams (+6600) to lead the series in assists from Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports).
Key trends and stats for Game 1 include Oklahoma City’s 2-1 record in Game 1s this postseason, while Indiana is 3-0. The Thunder are also 8-1 on the moneyline at home this postseason.
Stay up to date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day NBA schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game.
Game details:
Date: Thursday, June 5
Time: 8:30PM EST
Site: Paycom Center
City: Oklahoma City, OK
Network/Streaming: ESPN / ABC
Source: https://www.nbcsports.com/betting/nba/news/pacers-vs-thunder-game-1-predictions-odds-expert-picks-recent-stats-trends-and-best-bets-for-june-5