Before the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers do battle in Sunday’s Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals, three writers for The Athletic wrote about memories they have from the most recent Game 7 in NBA Finals history, which was between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016.
The Athletic’s Marcus Thompson II, who worked as a Bay Area News sports columnist during Game 7 in 2016, recalled a memorable moment that occurred after the final buzzer sounded that year. The Cavaliers had just won Game 7 to complete a historic comeback in the NBA Finals.
According to Thompson, the Warriors retreated to the locker room after the final horn sounded, but several of the team’s best players then made their way back on the court and walked over and hugged players on the Cavaliers as a sign of respect for an iconic moment in league history.
“One thing I’ll never forget happened shortly after the final horn,” Thompson wrote. “The Warriors immediately left the court. Stunned. Angered. Exhausted. They retreated to the locker room as the black jerseys of Cleveland celebrated on the hallowed hardwood of Oracle. Moments later, however, Steph Curry gradually made his way back to the court. So did Draymond Green. And Andre Iguodala. They stood by the Warriors’ bench and watched the Cavaliers dance on their soul. They were waiting for LeBron [James] and Cleveland to have their moment, soaking in the torment, until the visitors were ready.
“Then they walked over and hugged the foes with whom they just made history. Because even in their heartbreak, they understood what was unmistakable inside that arena. One of the greatest moments in NBA history just went down. No one would ever forget this game, this series, this season. And even though they lost, epically, they were obligated to lose like winners.”
To this day, the Cavaliers are the only team to win an NBA Finals series after being in a 1-3 hole at one point, and big games from guard Kyrie Irving as well as James propelled Cleveland to their first-ever championship in the series finale. They combined for 53 points in Game 7, and James totaled a triple-double in maybe the biggest game of his life with 27 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists.
Warriors defensive demon Draymond Green also had a noteworthy performance in the losing effort, as he dropped 32 points, nearly had a triple-double and buried all but two of his eight 3-pointers attempted in the deciding Game 7.
While the Pacers were never in a 1-3 hole in their series against the Thunder, they have a chance to follow in Cleveland’s footsteps in the sense that they have a shot to win Game 7 of the NBA Finals on the road. The odds aren’t necessarily stacked in their favor, as only four teams in league history have won Game 7 of the championship series away from home, but Indiana has fared well on the road throughout these playoffs.
The Pacers even won a road game against the Thunder earlier on in this series. They stole Game 1 of the best-of-seven series and won that contest by one point. Now, they’re one victory away from immortality, but so is OKC.