Offensive and Defensive duel: Defense is the key variable for the Pacers to compete with the Thunder

Both the Indiana Pacers and the Oklahoma City Thunder have the most explosive offensive firepower in the league, but the ownership of the 2025 NBA championship may ultimately be determined by the competition on the defensive end.

From firepower to defensive competition: The road to championship requires more "hard strength"

Although the two teams reached the division finals and division semi-finals respectively this season, and achieved significant improvements in lineup depth, Pacers coach Rick Carlisle - the coach who led the Dallas Mavericks to win the only championship in team history in 2010-11 - knows that such a showdown is not something that can be won by just offense, especially in the face of the Thunder.

"Their depth on the defensive end is really shocking," Carlisle said. "Shai (Gilgers Alexander) is not only a top scorer, but also a highly competitive defender. Jaylen Williams, Lou Dort, Caruso are all elite defenders. People are also paying attention to players like Aaron Wiggins and Carson Wallace, who are all highly competitive competitors. With their ability to protect the frame, the entire defense system can be said to be quite complete."

Thunder are stronger? The Pacers are not at a disadvantage

The Thunder won 68 wins in the regular season and locked in the top seed in the Western Conference for the second consecutive year. In the playoffs, their defensive performance went a step further - they averaged only 106.3 points per game, down from the 107.6 points in the regular season, and limited their opponents' scores to below 100 points in six of their 12 playoff wins. Although the Pacers' overall defensive data is not as eye-catching as the Thunder, their performance should not be underestimated. They eliminated three teams that averaged more than 115 points in the regular season - the Knicks, the Cavaliers and the Bucks. In 16 playoff games, 11 of them limit opponent scores below the regular season average.

Thunder coach Mark Dignot also admires the Pacers' progress:

"Look at their playoff journey this time, you can see how much trouble they have caused to their opponents," Dignot said. "Their defensive philosophy and offensive ideas are highly consistent, making the game full of a special atmosphere. From their sweeping across the East to advance to the finals, it can be seen that it is really difficult for the opponent to deal with their comprehensiveness."

The two teams have similar structures: young, deep, and defense are online

The Pacers and the Thunder have many similarities in team building. Both teams are centered on young players, have abundant bench depth, and rely on high-intensity rotation and pressing to drag down the opponent.

Especially in terms of making mistakes, the Thunder ranked first in the playoffs with 21.3 points per game, with the Pacers following closely behind, averaging 18.5 points per game.

However, because the outside world often focuses on their high-scoring and fast-paced play, their defensive ability is sometimes ignored and even mistaken for a weakness.

The facts are the opposite. The Pacers averaged 120.2 points per game in the regular season last season, but this season dropped to 115.1, and the playoffs dropped to 113.3.

Health and mentality promote the improvement of the Pacers' defense qualitative change

defensive end, which is inseparable from the recovery of the health status of core defensive players. Aaron Nesmith, Andrew Nemhard and Miles Turner are all relatively healthy these days.

Nesmith was absent for two and a half months due to a sprain of her left ankle. After returning in January, she gradually recovered her form. Even though he sprained his right ankle again in the Eastern Conference Finals G3, he still insisted on playing in the full series.

Nemhard was also absent for nearly a month due to left knee tendonitis at the beginning of the season.

Turner got rid of the long-standing minor injuries and regained the deterrent power of the frame protection. In addition to relieving injuries, changing attitude is also key. The reflection after being swept by the Celtics made the Pacers completely awaken on the defensive end.

"Last year, everyone said we couldn't win because we didn't defend, we just rely on offense to score," Haliburton admitted, "and our progress on the defensive end this year is the key reason why we can get to where we are. This series is definitely our biggest test."

Confrontation puzzle: Stars compete for defense and offense

Although neither coaches disclosed the specific matchmaking arrangements of G1, it can be predicted that:

Nemhard and Nesmith will face MVPs Gilgers Alexander and Jaylen Williams many times;

And the Thunder, the two annual defensive players, Dolter and Jaylen Williams, may use the two annual defensive lineup players, to limit Halliburton and Nemhard's performance.

Battle of Will: Who can laugh to the end?

For all players, this is not only a competition of technology and tactics, but also a confrontation of will.

"All the tests are actually very interesting, and now we have to take on this challenge on the biggest stage of our lives," Jaylen Williams said. "It will be a very exciting contest. They are a very good team, and it is no accident that they can reach the finals. No one can get to this point casually - so it will be the ultimate test we face."