OKC Thunder are the new NBA champs
About the champs and a possible trend coming for the NBA, headlines about big trades, and a pro wrestling tip-of-the-cap to Karate Kid.
“Speedball” Mike Bailey is a relatively recent addition to the All Elite Wrestling roster. He’s an entertaining wrestler, someone who moves fast and pulls off a number of exciting, athletic moves.
He’s also a classic case of the absurdity that often accompanies the impressive feats in pro wrestling. He has a mullet. He wrestles in his bare feet. His nickname is “Speedball,” if you didn’t catch that the first time.
The chef’s kiss of it all? He incorporates the crane kick, Karate Kid style, into his matches.
Today:
There was a game 7 in the NBA Finals last night, and the Thunder finally defeated the relentless Pacers.
How many “stunning” trades before none of them are stunning or shocking or gobsmacking?
Odds and ends about the NBA Finals, baseball images, and more.
What is it that actually kills zombies?
The Zombie Pacers, or so they came to be known. The Eastern Conference champions refused to go away without a fight anytime they were down in these playoffs.
So it was that, in game 7 with star player Tyrese Haliburton down with a devastating injury, the soundtrack continued to be announcers marveling at the Pacers’ resilience.
Example: “Siakim with the answer.” I feel like I heard some version of that line multiple times a game in the finals as the Pacers battled the Thunder.
Honorable mention: “McConnell mayhem once again!”
If there’s one NBA reserve who’s earned a pro wrestling style entrance when he checks into the game, it’s TJ McConnell. In these playoffs, McConnell was the platonic ideal of a try-hard off the bench. He scored 12 straight Pacers points in the third quarter last night. This was in a game 7 of the freaking NBA Finals.
Light up the jumbotron: “McConnell Mayhem!” Hit his entrance music. Do it right.
Back to game 7 and the conclusion of these finals, where the Thunder eventually ran away with the title. For the wide range of ways that the deciding game could have unfolded, many of them would be less satisfying or enjoyable.
For example, there’s always the possibility of the star players struggling or both teams generally playing poorly. There’s a possibility of a blowout from the opening minutes of the game. And of course, there’s the risk that a key player will go down with an injury.
Tyrese Haliburton injured his Achilles tendon in Game 7 of 2025 NBA Finals, his father told ESPN. The injury will sideline Pacers star vs. Thunder. https://bit.ly/4ejHCwS
— USA TODAY (@usatoday.com) 2025-06-23T02:30:17.536Z
The Indiana Pacers were still hanging tough for most of the game. They even had a lead at halftime. But they eventually ran out of steam without their best player, and a couple bursts notwithstanding, they simply could not keep up with the eventual champs.
The Oklahoma City Thunder were the best team. They clinched the finals by playing overwhelming defense and going on a big second half run, the way they did throughout the playoffs. They had the best player in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. They earned it, and nobody should question their greatness as champs.
There just had to be a more gratifying version of a game 7 to get us to that place.
With their youth and dominance this season, I imagine part of the NBA conversation will now turn to what other teams will try to copy from the Thunder. My guess: we’re going to enter a period where teams focus on athleticism and defense up and down the roster.
That’s easier said than done, of course. But it’s not impossible. The Pacers brought a lot of that defensive excellence to the table, after all, and might well be champions if a couple breaks had gone their way.
As for my Denver Nuggets and their casual approach to defense over the last number of seasons, this potential trend might not be so great for them.
Was the last one a shocker or a stunner?
Things just keep foggier with the notion of a “shocking” trade, a “blockbuster” deal, or even a “stunning” decision. Unexpected transactions have forced publications across the internet to come up with different ways to describe a surprising move.
It all started when the Dallas Mavericks traded Luka Dončić. Then two NBA teams that eventually made the playoffs fired their head coaches with less than a month left in the season (the Grizzlies and the Nuggets).
Business picked up the last couple weeks with these headline moves. Those same Grizzlies traded Desmond Bane to the Magic. Over in baseball, the Boston Red Sox dealt franchise player Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants.
Finally, the Phoenix Suns traded Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets. That move wasn’t even a surprise. But it was a blockbuster, and just a little watered down as such because of the handful that preceded it.
For what it’s worth, I think the marker should be reset at the level of the Dončić or Devers trades. Those teams alienated and traded franchise players in their primes. That’s actually stunning, shocking, or whatever synonym you prefer. And it’s at least interesting that both trades happened in the span of one year.
Odds and ends
The Thunder are ahead of schedule with their young roster, on top of their winning in a way that bucked recent NBA trends (The Ringer).
Enjoy some images from baseball, because you never know what you might see in the mundane day to day of the regular season (Pebble Hunting).
Drama in professional golf might be relative, depending on one’s interests, but Keegan Bradley pulled off one heck of a win at the Travelers Championship yesterday (PGA).
I’m going to end this one where I started: with some Speedball Mike Bailey content. His 2023 match with Will Ospreay is one example I point to when I say that the speed and athleticism in modern pro wrestling can be pretty incredible.
Whether you like wrestling or not, I think these last four minutes of their match will be a good way to start your week.
Images via Speedball Mike Bailey on YouTube, Wikimedia Commons and Wikimedia Commons
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