Oklahoma City Thunder (OKC) just defeated the Indiana Pacers (Pacers) in Game 5, even though the Pacers put in all their effort. Tyrese Halliburton, now the Halliban, was hurt on his lower right leg but still played 34 minutes even though things weren’t looking good.
Oklahoma City Thunder was playing very aggressively on offense and was guarding the injured Halliban, causing him to have the worst NBA Finals performance. Jalen Williams also had an amazing performance tonight, where he dropped 40 points with 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and a steal in 35 minutes.
The Pacers also caused a few self-inflicted wounds, missed a few free throws, and were sped up by OKC. OKC used their tactics against them, leading the Pacers to try and play at OKC’s pace.
The ball movement in the first quarter was more tactical, with their defense being good and applying a lot of pressure. The crowd was fueling their win even in the 3rd quarter, where it was looking a little tight. Shai also had 14 free throws using his foul-baiting skills. Hartenstein was used in setting the screen for this game to give Shai buckets
OKC, being the youngest team to get to the playoffs since the Trailblazers, is showing a lot of commitment and tenacity to win game 5. This shows that hard work might just get them the championship after all, and this, alongside Shai’s MVP, will set them apart from the rest of the teams
