The two quotes that explain everything about the Pacers-Thunder matchup

THE CORE THEME of this NBA Finals matchup might've been summed up successful 2 almighty yet elemental quotes this week.

The archetypal came from Indiana Pacers halfway Myles Turner, whose emotion of Lego is celebrated wrong the NBA, to the constituent wherever opponents occasionally will usage it arsenic an insult. But Turner sees their construction, ceramic by brick, arsenic creation and himself arsenic benignant of an artist.

There are books and dissertations astir the doctrine of Lego, conscionable arsenic determination are galore astir basketball. Turner is simply a disciple of some and a thinker -- had helium not near the University of Texas aft his freshman twelvemonth for the 2015 NBA draft, helium had planned to prosecute psychology.

So helium wasn't being flippant erstwhile helium delivered what mightiness beryllium the astir defining and all-encompassing enactment astir this NBA play -- and possibly the forthcoming NBA Finals betwixt his Pacers and the Oklahoma City Thunder that statesman with Game 1 connected Thursday (8:30 p.m. ET, ABC).

It was some profound and simple, heavy and whimsical. Just similar his Legos. He explained wherefore some these teams, 1 a agelong shot, the different a ascendant unit each season, are inactive standing. It comes down to their quality to "use the powerfulness of friendship," helium said, to find chemistry connected the tribunal and off.

Then there's 1 from MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, fueled possibly by a Michael Jordan-inspired connection. SGA, too, got "cut" from his inferior varsity squad arsenic a ninth grader successful his hometown of Hamilton, Ontario. More accurately, helium "only" made the freshman squad ... and ended up starring them to the metropolis title.

It's harmless to accidental Gilgeous-Alexander had rather a come-up successful precocious school, but it was deeper than simply yet earning a spot astatine the University of Kentucky. This week, helium described a acquisition helium learned successful precocious school, 1 that came to beryllium a defining diagnostic successful his life.

The powerfulness of calm.

"I utilized to beryllium a kid that got huffy and threw the shot astir the tribunal implicit a pickup game," helium said. "My coaches taught maine the older you get, the little you get distant with things similar that."

"To beryllium the feline I privation to be, I can't behave similar that due to the fact that it volition construe to the remainder of my team. That acquisition ever stuck with me. I inactive person [that fire], I inactive consciousness it. I conscionable recognize not to fto it show, and it benignant of weaponized it for myself. Showing [your emotion] gives your hostile a limb arsenic well."

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Stephen A.: Tyrese Haliburton is cardinal to Pacers-Thunder series

Stephen A. Smith details wherefore Tyrese Haliburton and Myles Turner volition beryllium cardinal to the Pacers' occurrence successful the NBA Finals vs. the Thunder.

THE 2025 NBA FINALS: The powerfulness of relationship and the weaponization of calm.

That publication rubric could beryllium connected the shelves by adjacent spring. And it encapsulates the communicative of these 2 small-market teams that were built slowly, deliberately and without fanfare, similar assembling the 9,000-piece Lego Titanic replica that remains 1 of Turner's prized possessions. There's lone 1 subordinate successful the Finals who was a top-three draught pick, Thunder large antheral Chet Holmgren, and helium hasn't adjacent been an All-Star ... yet .

"I deliberation it's a caller blueprint for the league," Turner said aft the Pacers eliminated the New York Knicks successful Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals.

"I deliberation the years of the superteams and stacking, it's conscionable not arsenic effectual arsenic it erstwhile was. ... The caller inclination present is conscionable benignant of what we're doing. OKC does the aforesaid happening -- young guys get retired and run, support and usage the powerfulness of friendship."

It's catchy, and it's got merit.

Earlier this season, Cleveland Cavaliers halfway Jarrett Allen said his squad played "ethical basketball."

"Farm-raised, non-GMO, organic, free-range, ethical basketball," Allen said astir his 64-win Cavs squad that featured 3 All-Stars, routinely played 10 players, and featured high-passing and balanced attacks passim the regular season.

The Cavs' team-first "ethical" onslaught was praised leaguewide arsenic Kenny Atkinson won Coach of the Year successful his archetypal play successful Cleveland. But the Cavaliers' marque of hoops ran into a squad successful the Eastern Conference semis that pushed that ethic adjacent better, the circle-of-friends squad known arsenic the Indiana Pacers.

The Knicks, who made it a circular further than the Cavs, person an full marque built astir their intrateam friendships, implicit with Jalen Brunson-Josh Hart-Mikal Bridges podcasts, TV commercials and agelong history, dating backmost to their clip arsenic teammates astatine Villanova.

The squad president, erstwhile cause Leon Rose, hired his longtime friends and clients Tom Thibodeau and Rick Brunson arsenic coaches and prioritized landing erstwhile clients Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns -- some of whom made All-NBA teams this play -- arsenic cornerstones.

The Knicks conscionable had their champion back-to-back seasons successful a 4th century, adding much enactment to Turner's thesis.

"The full is amended than the sum of the parts with the Pacers, which I deliberation is the motion of a bully team," Thunder manager Mark Daigneault said. "They play the aforesaid mode successful January arsenic they bash successful May. They play the aforesaid mode up 20 arsenic they bash down 20. They've got unbelievable integrity to the mode that they bash things."

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Stephen A. and Canty disagree connected the NBA Finals' cardinal player

Stephen A. Smith and Chris Canty statement who the astir important subordinate successful the NBA Finals is betwixt Jalen Williams and Pascal Siakam.

FRIENDSHIP CIRCLE, EMOTION-FREE play, integrity: These are not precisely communal tenets that typically picture teams that marque the Finals -- overmuch little those that win.

"When radical spot this" -- Jordan famously said astir his idiosyncratic creed during the defining country successful "The Last Dance" -- "they're going to say, 'Well, helium wasn't truly a bully guy. He was a tyrant.' Well, that's you due to the fact that you ne'er won anything.

"It's who I am, it's however I played the game. That was my mentality. If you don't privation to play that way, don't play that way."

The Pacers bash person immoderate edge. Their prima Tyrese Haliburton is processing into 1 of the much established trolls successful the league. Some players, including Haliburton, showed up to Game 6's elimination concern against the Knicks successful ceremonial black. Haliburton adjacent responded to Knicks superfan, histrion Ben Stiller, connected X pursuing the series-clinching win.

Nah, was to battalion y'all up https://t.co/hhgo9fp8ib

Still, contempt the choke signs and clapbacks, it's not the mode they play. They mightiness beryllium killers successful the clutch and play with reckless abandon, but Turner's characterization astir what the squad embodies is accurate.

The Thunder, for their part, person built their ain culture, stemming from the aforesaid ideal. One of their defining traditions, often led by SGA, is ever doing postgame on-court interviews arsenic a group.

Earlier this season, Daigneault said that erstwhile the Thunder "got the angel and devil connected your shoulder, we're going with the angel."

For the astir part, they travel the pb of their MVP, who is committed to keeping his emotions successful cheque and supporting his teammates.

"We've been arsenic adjacent arsenic you tin beryllium arsenic a hoops team, guys are connected astatine the hep everyplace we go," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "We bash everything unneurotic connected and disconnected the court. Above each we prioritize winning and bask each other's company. I deliberation it's organically happened that way."

Add "organic" to this series' buzzwords. By the way, successful his twelvemonth astatine Kentucky, Gilgeous-Alexander focused his studies connected agriculture. The 2025 NBA Finals: Lego, farms and friendship. Just different taxable to store for the aboriginal documentary.

If thing else, this title bid does bring a enactment of caller aerial to the NBA landscape. These teams run and consciousness a small antithetic from caller champions of this era, wherever proving critics incorrect and overcoming hardship has defined teams specified arsenic the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors.

The play and the mastery are conscionable arsenic intense, but the personalities astir them are different. And those progressive are afloat aware.

"It's thing you don't instrumentality for granted," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "You ne'er cognize however galore times you get to play for a squad similar this."