The contrasting tale of the last two NBA champions

They say the NBA is a copycat league, but the 2024-25 Oklahoma City Thunder did not mimic any of the trends of the 2023-24 Boston Celtics. 

The last two NBA champions couldn't have been more different — both stylistically and philosophically. The Celtics attempted 41.4 threes per game in last year's Finals against the Mavericks. This year's Thunder hoisted only 29.3 shots from deep across seven games against the Pacers.

Furthermore, last year's Celtics averaged 37.6 points in the paint against the Mavericks, while the Thunder tallied 44.0 against the Pacers. The shot-profile disparity is even more jarring from the midrange. Thunder (13.5) attempted more than five shots more from 10-16 feet range than the Celtics (8.4) in their respective Finals series. 

There's also the stark contrast in bench scoring. The Celtics got only 19.9 points from their bench players in last year's playoff run. The Thunder, who went 10-deep in nearly every game, got 32.2 points from their second-unit players en route to the NBA championship.

Here's another mind blowing distinction: the Celtics drove to the rim 5.2 times per game in last year's playoff run. Thunder (11.3) attacked the paint 6.1 more times per game in their triumphant postseason.

OKC's philosophy — focused on creating turnovers and attacking the basket in the half court — couldn't be more different than Boston's. The latter's offensive scheme was predicated entirely on hoisting as many three-pointers as possible, a mantra they failed to deviate from even after being exposed by the Knicks in this year's playoffs. 

Mark Daigneault's men have proven that there is no set formula for success. Rather than copying the Celtics, they played to the strengths of their players — both Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams are at their best while attacking the rim. 

This represents a departure from copycat teams of the past. In 2018, the Rockets missed 27 consecutive threes in Game 7 of their conference finals against the Warriors, after attempting to replicate the latter's formula of excelling at the long ball. They ultimately found out that they lacked the personnel to beat the Warriors at their own game.

The Thunder played a brand of basketball we haven't seen in years, possibly creating a blueprint for others to follow. But, once again, those teams would be erring by playing copycat rather than unearthing a formula unique to them — and their personnel.