In 24 hours, the 2025 NBA Champion will be crowned. That’s because for the first time since 2016, the Finals between the Indiana Pacers and the Oklahoma City Thunder will go to a Game 7. While many are still picking the Thunder to be the team that triumphs, Dwyane Wade broke down why he thinks Indy has the advantage.
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The Hall of Famer spoke about the upcoming championship finale alongside some of his boys on the latest edition of his podcast. One major aspect that The Flash wanted to point out wasn’t any of the players on the court, but how Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle has been to the show, and won a title with the Mavericks in 2011. Who did Carlisle and company beat that year? Wade and the Heat.
“Let’s remember the Rick Carlisle effect when we talk about Game 7s,” Wade began. “Won a championship before, has been there.” The NBA legend is right. Coaching is everything in these close games, and Carlisle’s 2025 Pacers have proven that they are never out of any game until the clock reads zero.
Not only that, but Carlisle has already done wonders to stop the Thunder’s main weapon, league MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. “He got a little flack for the way they been defending SGA. Look at the defensive assignment he made, the adjustment that was made here.”
“That’s a lot of coaching as well, that’s not just the players,” stated Wade, who was impressed with what the 65-year-old veteran has been doing.
D-Wade used those examples to futher drive home his point: If Game 7 becomes a close, he gives the Pacers the advantage just because of Carlisle’s coaching experience.
“We know the Pacers have the advantage, and that scares you a little bit if you’re an OKC fan because you know they’re going to be able to make the right adjustments. But if it gets to a point where it is a close game, then you got to look at the Pacers. The Pacers may have the nod.”
The proof is in the pudding. Indiana bounced through Giannis and the Bucks, through the No. 1-ranked Cavaliers, and through a spirited Knicks team to make it to the Finals. They stole Game 1 off the heroics of another late-game comeback, and a clutch shot by The Moment, Tyrese Haliburton.
If the Thunder don’t want their championship dreams crushed, they need to rout the Pacers as quickly as possible. SGA needs to morph into the player who won the MVP this season. Chet needs to show up. The bench needs to be ready, because the Pacers’ bench is ALWAYS ready.
But Wade’s point should give Thunder fans something to lose sleep over. Either they prepare for an intense Indy team to come out of the gates firing, or they will watch their magical season slip through their fingers.
