A major historic precedent shall be damaged if the Thunder fail to beat the Pacers in Recreation 7 of the NBA Finals on Sunday.
That is as a result of the 5 different groups with the largest points differential in NBA history — the 1971-72 Lakers (12.28), 1970-71 Bucks (12.26), 1995-96 Bulls (12.24), 2016-17 Warriors (11.63) and 2023-24 Boston Celtics (11.34) — all went on to hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
The Thunder (12.87) clinched the scoring differential record with a 68-14 report, establishing themselves as one of the vital dominant regular-season groups in NBA lore. In the event that they fail to seize the title, they danger happening in historical past as a staff that choked beneath the brightest lights.
Mark Daigneault’s males additionally danger changing into solely the second staff to win 68 video games with out securing the NBA title, becoming a member of the 2015-16 Warriors, who infamously blew a 3-1 result in the Cavaliers after profitable a report 73 video games within the common season.
All of the strain is on the Thunder. The Pacers made a Cinderella run to the Finals and are primarily enjoying with home cash. Whatever the consequence, they’d nonetheless be celebrated for defying the percentages and reaching the championship spherical. That sentiment would not apply to the Thunder, who would have didn’t dwell as much as their hype.
Former NBA star Chandler Parsons believes a loss for the Thunder would mark the largest upset in NBA Finals historical past.
