Despite the Oklahoma City Thunder holding overwhelming odds over the Indiana Pacers, cash-in opportunities remain for those looking to place a wager on the 2024-2025 NBA Finals.
For the upcoming NBA Finals between the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder which tips off on June 5, the Thunder are currently strong favorites from nearly every operator, including on DraftKings sportsbook where the franchise is listed at -650 to win its first championship. A victory would represent an equal achievement for Indiana, but any team that came out of the Eastern conference would most likely have been doubted going up against Oklahoma City.
With odds of +475, it’s too difficult attempting to convince any bettor that the Pacers may have a genuine chance in this series, but that does not mean intriguing possibilities don’t remain in the quest for high payout wagers. Whether it be series spreads, player props or exact results, DraftKings still leaves plenty of options for bettors looking for plus-value throughout the 2024-2025 Finals.
Beginning with the series spread, DraftKings lists the Thunder with odds of -140 to cover a 2.5-game spread, meaning the franchise would have to defeat the Pacers in either five games or a four-game sweep. The wager does not leave much wiggle room for Oklahoma City to possibly slip up during the contest, but there is also a reason as to why the odds are still -140 despite resulting in a quick victory for the Thunder.
Oklahoma City is tremendous on the defensive side of the court, frustrating star opposition and creating turnovers that lead to easy points on the other end. Point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was named Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the 2024-2025 season, and while fellow ball handler Tyrese Haliburton has also been incredible this postseason, Gilgeous-Alexander has truly broken out to help lead the Thunder back to the sport’s ultimate stage.
For Indiana to cover a +2.5-game spread, however, the odds become slightly more favorable for bettors at +120, as the Pacers could certainly win a game at home but may struggle to find victory at Oklahoma City. The Thunder were pushed to seven games by the Denver Nuggets in the second round of the Playoffs, but took care of both the Memphis Grizzlies and Minnesota Timberwolves in five games or less.
Indiana, meanwhile, handled the Milwaukee Bucks and Cleveland Cavaliers with relative ease before needing improbable fourth quarter comebacks to bypass the New York Knicks. The Pacers avoided a seventh game against any of three postseason opponents, but neither also equals the level of talent Oklahoma City will present come June 5. Still, in a sport where genuinely anything can happen and off nights occur, taking the Pacers to claw out two victories in the NBA Finals may be worth the +120 odds.
An intriguing player prop also remains in Jalen Williams to record the most three-pointers of any player in the series, with the probability boosted if one thinks offense will come easy for Oklahoma City throughout the series. The Thunder do not roster a lethal three-point shooter that also averages as many minutes per game as Williams who is shooting close to 31% from deep for the postseason but is still also taking five-to-six attempts per game.
Having shot 42.7% from three-point range in 2023-2024 and 36.5% this regular season, Williams clearly has better shooting in his arsenal even when regressing to his typical mean. The third-year player also experiences a breakout of sorts in the Western Conference Finals against Minnesota, averaging 22.2 points per game and having shot 46.2% from three-point range on over five attempts per game. If Williams can continue this hot shooting stroke into the NBA Finals, his +1100 odds to lead players in the category represent incredible value for bettors.
Finally, Oklahoma City to win the series by an exact score of 4-1 has odds of +230 on DraftKings, which remains as the most likely outcome given the talent discrepancy between both clubs. Indiana should be able to scrape together enough motivation and offense to give its home crowd at least one victory in game three or four, but this series will most likely be over sooner rather than later even with the Pacers incredible run to this stage. The Thunder to sweep the series represent odds of +250, and either is good value for bettors who believe Oklahoma City is well on its way to the first championship in franchise history.
