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Shaquille O'Neal and Isiah Thomas Make Head-Turning Prediction For The NBA Finals

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Toran Flores | Last updated Jun 5, 2025 7:54 PM ET

The NBA Finals start on Thursday night as the Oklahoma City Thunder take on the Indiana Pacers in Game 1.

Both teams have had dominant paths leading up to the matchup that included some crazy moments in the sport's most competitive time of the season.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and the Thunder will look to use Game 1 to their advantage as they play in Oklahoma City to start the series.

This won't stop Tyrese Haliburton, Pascal Siakam, and the Indiana Pacers from putting on the show to open up the final series of the 2024-25 season.

With insiders and fans analyzing the two teams leading up to the start of the game, there's been some bold predictions from some of the NBA's biggest names.

In this case, the prediction comes from two former NBA champions in Shaquille O'Neal and Isiah Thomas.

The two spoke on NBA TV and Shaq led off the predictions to who they think will win Game 1.

"Everybody is expecting OKC to win, I'm going to go ahead and pick OKC. But Indiana – the underdog team – I think if they can do the impossible, their names will definitely live on forever," Shaq said.

Isiah Thomas went the opposite way, saying, "I'm going to pick Indiana to win, because the way they've been playing. How tough they've been playing, defensively and offensively, I just think they are very underrated right now."

"I'm gonna go a little against the grain. I'm gonna pick Indiana to win." ️

Isiah says Pacers are "underrated" in his response to @SHAQ's OKC prediction. pic.twitter.com/AaJw6GmA48
— NBA TV (@NBATV) June 5, 2025

Game 1 of The Finals tip off Thursday night, as the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers each look to capture the first NBA championship for either franchise's history.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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