Gregory Shamus
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK.–When the Indiana Pacers play the Oklahoma City Thunder in this upcoming NBA Finals, they will be big underdogs.
Most sportsbooks have the Thunder as -750 favorites to win it all. The message from Pacer players on Media Day Wednesday is that being underdogs is nothing new to them.
“There’s no shortcuts to beating this team,” Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton said. “And we know the odds are stacked against us, but it is what it is. We want to be here. We want to play against the best, and this is the best. So we’re looking forward to the challenge as a group.”
Pacer guard TJ McConnell says they are not worried about the external noise.
“We know what we have to do to win, and we have to do it together. Anything outside of that, we’re not concerning ourself with,” said McConnell.
The Thunder won an NBA-best 68 games in the regular season, going 35-6 at home. The Pacers went 50-32, their first 50-win season in a decade.
The Thunder also set the NBA record for point differential in the regular season, averaging 12.9 more points per game than their opponents.
Indiana scores on average 117 points per game while the Thunder score 120. The Thunder lead the Pacers in most statistical categories except for assists. The Pacers average 29 assists per game to the Thunder’s 27.
Oklahoma City won both games against Indiana in the regular season. Oklahoma City is also the youngest team to make the NBA Finals in 48 years, according to data provided by the league. With an average age of about 25 years and seven months, they’re the youngest finalist since Portland in 1977.
“We’ve got a lot of work cut out for us,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. “A lot of our guys have been through a lot of situations where they’ve been underdogs in the past. It’s simply going to come down to us being able to play our game at the best possible level. We’re going to need to take care of the ball because these guys turn people over at an historic rate, and we’re going to have to make some shots.”