Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Indiana Pacers Game 6 Prediction, NBA Finals Odds
The Larry O’Brien Trophy will be in the building on Thursday night in Indiana as the Pacers look to force Game 7 in the NBA Finals. After a 120-109 Game 5 win on Monday, the Thunder have their first series lead as they look to clinch the title for the first time since moving from Seattle to Oklahoma City.
Can OKC close things out in Game 6, or will Indiana force this series to go the difference?
The Thunder opened as 6.5-point favourites to win Game 6 on the NBA odds, with the total pegged at 221.5.
Thunder vs. Pacers NBA Betting Odds
Few people predicted this series would even last six games, let alone the Pacers would have held two separate leads. For context on how good Indiana has been, consider the fact that prior to the playoffs, Oklahoma City had won 18 straight games against Eastern Conference opponents.
The Thunder’s success on the moneyline, however, hasn’t translated to the spread. OKC is just 1-8 against the spread in their last nine road games, including a split in Indiana in this series.
For anyone holding out hope for the Pacers, you can grab them at +1250 to win the series on the NBA futures board. OKC is a massive -3300 championship favourite. A smarter play if you’re a Thunder backer could be to take them to win in seven games at a price of +270.
While Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is a heavy -650 favourite to be named Finals MVP, I’ve got a couple of sneakier options for both teams.
OKC’s Jalen Williams is coming off his best performance of the playoffs with 40 points and if he leads the Thunder in scoring by a wide margin in Game 6 and/or Game 7, that could be enough to edge out Gilgeous-Alexander.
If you’ve got Indiana circled as the comeback kids, Pascal Siakam is probably a lock to win Finals MVP. Haliburton has been limited with a leg injury, so everything will run through Siakam, who was also named Eastern Conference Finals MVP.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander certainly didn’t take the night off in Game 5, but he also didn’t need to be the biggest star. Jalen Williams went off for a playoff career-high 40 points, while regular season MVP Gilgeous-Alexander added 31 points. It was a promising output from Williams, who has increased his scoring in each game of the series. It was more of the same from SGA, who is averaging 32.4 points per game in the Finals.
If you’re looking at the futures board, it’s important to recognize how heavily history favours the Thunder right now. Teams that win Game 5 of an NBA Finals that is tied 2-2, have won the series 23 times in 31 previous scenarios (74 per cent). Also, teams that hold a 3-2 series lead in the Finals have won 40 of 49 times (82 per cent).
Indiana Pacers
Pascal Siakam led the way for Indiana in Game 5. Sikam finished with 28 points, his highest offensive output since Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Knicks. T.J. McConnell had another strong outing, racking up 18 points. The Pacers actually clawed back from an 18-point deficit to come within four points in the fourth quarter before OKC stormed away late.
The major concern for Game 6 (and Game 7 if needed) is the status of Tyrese Haliburton, who was limited to four points in Game 5 and was essentially used as a decoy in the second half. Haliburton has been Indiana’s most productive player in the playoffs, but he’s dealing with a calf injury that he aggravated early in Game 5. His status for Game 6 is officially up in the air, but even if he plays, he’s clearly far from 100 per cent.
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