Oklahoma City Thunder guard Aaron Wiggins (21) shoots the ball against the Indiana Pacers during the first half during game two of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center.
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Aaron Wiggins (21) shoots the ball against the Indiana Pacers during the first half during game two of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center.
The Oklahoma City Thunder secured a much-needed win in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday, and much of the post-game credit has been dolled out to two players: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Aaron Wiggins.
While SGA, the league MVP, is always expected to make an impact, Wiggins provided an invaluable scoring punch off the bench to help the Thunder on Sunday evening. Wiggins, who played just nine minutes and scored 3 points in Game 1 of the series, exploded for 18 points in 21 minutes in Game 2, and his impact did not go unnoticed.
Gilgeous-Alexander, in particular, was complimentary of his teammate's performance.
“It's impressive to me,” Gilgeous-Alexander said of Wiggins in Game 2. “He's been exactly who he's been all year throughout the playoffs. Sometimes he gets 20 minutes, sometimes he gets two minutes, sometimes he gets 10, it's all over the place. No matter what, he finds a way to impact winning for us. And you need it in the biggest moments. No one-man show can win an NBA championship. For him to rise to the occasion and just be who he's been in the biggest moment of his basketball career is pretty gutsy. Says a lot about the competitor and the man he is. So hats off to Wigs.”
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Aaron Wiggins' breakout game last night in Game 2 of Thunder-Pacers, where he scored 18 points with 5 made threes:
"It's impressive to me. He's been exactly who he's been all year throughout the playoffs… it's all over the place. No matter what, he… pic.twitter.com/3FKraQHLtY
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) June 9, 2025
Article Continues Below
[Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) shoots the ball against Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) during the second half during game two of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center
Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) shoots the ball against Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) during the second half during game two of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center](https://clutchpoints.com/nba/oklahoma-city-thunder/thunder-news-shai-gilgeous-alexander-best-fans-revelation-helped-fuel-game-2-win)
[Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault motions to his team during the fourth quarter against the Indiana Pacers in game two of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center.
Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault motions to his team during the fourth quarter against the Indiana Pacers in game two of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center.](https://clutchpoints.com/nba/oklahoma-city-thunder/thunder-news-mark-daigneault-truth-bomb-acquired-taste-pacers)
Wiggins hit five of his eight three-point attempts on Sunday and was a game-high +24. Meanwhile, SGA scored 34 points in a game in which no other player on either team had more than 20.
Unlike Game 1, when Tyrese Haliburton capped off an improbable comeback for a Pacers victory, Indiana could not overcome a double-digit halftime lead on Sunday. The Pacers trailed 59-41 at the break and never got the run they needed to steal yet another game in Oklahoma City. Haliburton led his team in scoring with 17 points.
Now the series shifts to Indianapolis, where the Pacers are 6-2 in the playoffs. A win in either Games 3 or 4 would ensure that the series would reach six games and give Indiana one last home game. But the Pacers very well could take a commanding 3-1 lead back to OKC over the next five days; Indiana similarly pulled off upsets against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, and the New York Knicks en route to the NBA Finals.
Game 3 between the Pacers and Thunder is set for 7:30 p.m. CT on Wednesday.