Good morning, I’m Dan Gartland. I still can’t get over how Texas scored the winning run against Texas Tech in the WCWS.
In today’s SI:AM:
🏒 Oilers take Game 1
⭐ NFL’s best trios
🏈 Giants preview
The NBA Finals matchup between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers certainly isn’t the one executives at Disney wanted to see. Still, if you’re a basketball fan, there’s plenty to look forward to in this series between flyover country teams. They may play in small cities, but these are two exciting teams. Here’s what I’ll be paying attention to as the series gets underway at 8:30 p.m. ET tonight on ABC..
Thunder’s SRS (Simple Rating System): 12.7
The Thunder just completed what is, without exaggeration, one of the greatest regular seasons in NBA history. Their 68–14 record is impressive enough, making them just the seventh team ever to win at least 68 games in a season. But by at least one measure, their season was actually the most dominant in the league's history.
Basketball Reference has a stat called Simple Rating System, or SRS, that the site defines as “a rating that takes into account average point differential and strength of schedule.” It’s presented such that the league average is zero. OKC’s SRS this season was 12.7. For context, the Cleveland Cavaliers ranked second at 8.81, the Boston Celtics were third at 8.28, and then there was another big gap before you got to the Minnesota Timberwolves at 5.15.
The Thunder’s SRS is actually the highest of any team in NBA history, easily surpassing the previous mark of 11.91 set by the 1971–72 Milwaukee Bucks. The Thunder might not have the glitz and glamour of recent juggernauts like the great Golden State Warriors teams of the previous decade, but this group is as thoroughly dominant as any team has ever been.
Pacers’ playoff three-point percentage: .401
So, how can the Pacers stand any chance against one of the best teams of all time? If they keep shooting lights-out.
The Pacers were good but not great from long range in the regular season, ranking ninth in the NBA with a .368 three-point percentage, but they’ve been way better in the postseason, improving that three-point rate to a playoff-best .401.
Every member of Indiana’s starting five is a threat to knock down a three. Aaron Nesmith was the team’s most reliable three-point shooter in the regular season, but he’s improved his already impressive .431 regular-season rate to an outrageous .500 in the playoffs. Pascal Siakam shot .389 from deep in the regular season—not bad for a power forward, but still way shy of his .463 playoff percentage. Andrew Nembhard made the most dramatic improvement. He shot just .291 from deep in the regular season. Only six players took as many threes as he did and hit a lower percentage of them than Nembhard did. But in the playoffs, Nembhard is shooting a blistering .483 from three.
The Pacers’ success this postseason has been directly correlated with their three-point shooting. When they hit more than one-third of their threes, they’re 12–0. When they don’t they’re 0–4.
Oklahoma City’s Pace Factor: 100
Get ready for an action-packed series. Both of these teams ranked near the top of the league in pace in the regular season. The Thunder ranked sixth (100.0) and the Pacers were right behind in seventh (99.9).
This is just the second time since 1986 that the Finals have featured two teams that played at a pace of at least 99.9 possessions per game in the regular season. The last time was the excellent 2019 Finals between the Warriors and Toronto Raptors.
Tyrese Haliburton’s postseason assists per game: 9.8
Haliburton has been the breakout star of these playoffs, carrying the Pacers to victory on multiple occasions. It’s his three 30-point games that have earned him the most attention, but he’s also an elite distributor. He’s averaging 9.8 assists per game in the playoffs, the most of any player this postseason.
The challenge for Haliburton will be deciding when to be a facilitator and when to take matters into his own hands. During Indiana’s previous series with the New York Knicks, there were times when Haliburton was not assertive enough offensively. Yes, he has plenty of talent around him, but he’s the team’s best player. If the Pacers are going to stand any chance in this series, Haliburton can’t have a game like he did in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals when he only took seven shots.
… things I saw yesterday:
5. Ceddanne Rafaela’s 308-foot walk-off home run just inside the Pesky Pole at Fenway. That’s the shortest walk-off homer of the Statcast era.
4. The fan in Sacramento who dove on top of the dugout in pursuit of a foul ball.
3. Wyatt Langford’s hurdle over an attempted tag at first base.
2. Leon Draisaitl’s overtime game-winner for the Oilers in Game 1.
1. The wacky play that allowed Texas to beat Texas Tech in the first game of the Women’s College World Series championship series. Tech was trying to issue an intentional walk with runners on second and third in the bottom of the sixth inning, but star pitcher NiJaree Canady’s pitch got too much of the plate and Texas’s Reese Atwood hit a two-run single to take the lead.