17 years after the team’s inception, the Oklahoma City Thunder are now the 2025 NBA Champions, capping off a historic season. In the first Game 7 since the 2016 Finals, OKC defeated the Indiana Pacers 103-91. Boasting just two players on its roster older than 27, the Thunder are the second-youngest champion in NBA history, behind the 1976-77 Portland Trail Blazers.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way with 29 points and 12 assists, Jalen Williams scored, and Chet Holmgren added 18 points for the Thunder.

With the victory, Gilgeous-Alexander completed one of the greatest seasons of all time. This year, he led the league in scoring, won the regular MVP, won an NBA championship, and the Finals MVP. He joins Shaquille O’Neal, Michael Jordan, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the only players to have accomplished the feat. Also,  he is the first player to win the league MVP award and a championship in the same season since Stephen Curry with the 2014-15 Golden State Warriors.

"It doesn't feel real," said Gilgeous-Alexander after the game. "So many hours. So many moments. So many emotions. So many nights of disbelief. So many nights of belief. It's crazy to know that we're all here, but this group worked for it. This group put in the hours, and we deserve this."

"As a kid, you dream. Every kid dreams. But you don't ever really know if it's going to come true. I'm just glad and happy that my dreams have been able to come true. That's a "thank you" to everyone that's been in my corner that helped me get there. Wouldn't have been able to get here without them. They know who they are. Yeah, it's a win for the family."

Along with the individual brilliance of Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC has been a united team from preseason to the Finals. 

"They behave like champions. They compete like champions," coach Mark Daigneault said. "They root for each other's success, which is rare in professional sports. I've said it many times, and now I'm going to say it one more time. They are an uncommon team, and now they're champions."

After hitting three out of his first four 3-pointers, Tyrese Haliburton suffered a devastating right Achilles injury while driving to the basket with 4:55 left in the first quarter that leaving the Paycom Center in complete silence. He would not return to the game after leading the Pacers on one of the most unprecedented runs in playoff history. 

In the absence of Haliburton, the resilient Pacers put up a valiant effort and cut a 20-point deficit down to 10 in the closing minutes. But the Thunder’s defensive pressure caused 21 turnovers, leading to 32 Thunder points proved to be too much.

Sam Presti, the team’s general manager since the franchise's final season in Seattle in 2007-08, has solidified himself as an NBA executive par excellence. He meticulously made shrewd draft picks, trades, championed player development, and now has a young team that could be on the cusp of a dynasty. The team has all the current players under contract and has an amazing 13 first-round picks in the next seven drafts.

“Things take longer than you think they should, and then when they happen, sometimes they happen faster than you think they could have,” Presti told The Oklahoman. “And we never really looked at time, or specific periods, or benchmarks. Really just tried to focus on building a team that could be sustainable and not take shortcuts.”