The stat that should scare the Indiana Pacers going on the road for Game 7
The Indiana Pacers head to Oklahoma City to play the Thunder in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, but road teams haven’t faired well in Game 7s of the NBA Finals.

When the Conference Finals were settled and the finalists were determined, there were a lot of people whining about the last two teams standings. I hope all of those whiners have shut up by now. After a riveting first six games between the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder, we have Game 7 to decide the NBA Champion.
It all comes down to this
Excuse the cliche here, but they are the best two words in sports. Game. Seven. That’s exactly what we have on Sunday night from Paycom Center. After a dominant regular season in which the Thunder won 68 games, they have earned the right to host the 7th and final game of the Finals.
All that hard work, and consistency didn’t just pay off at the end of the regular season, when they got the one seed in the West. Their 68 wins are tied for fifth most in NBA regular season history, and now they are back home for the decisive game on Sunday night. That’s great news for the Thunder who are hoping to keep with the historical trend of home teams in Game 7 of the Finals.
🚨🚨 WE'RE GOING TO GAME 7 🚨🚨
— NBA (@NBA) June 20, 2025
The Pacers and Thunder will battle for the NBA CHAMPIONSHIP in a WINNER-TAKE-ALL GAME 7 on Sunday, June 22 at 8pm/et on ABC! #NBAFinals presented by @YouTubeTV 🏆 pic.twitter.com/LvbNt97Yuk
Sunday night’s game in OKC will be the 20th Game 7 in NBA Finals history. It will be the first Game 7 in the NBA since the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena to compete their improbable 3-1 comeback over Steph Curry and the Warriors. The Cavs won that game on the road, but they were just one of four road teams that were able to close out the Finals on the road and lift the Larry O’Brien Trophy in front of the other teams fans.
History of home teams in Game 7
Since the 1950s there have been 19 Game 7s in the NBA Finals, and in those 19 games the home team has been crowned champion in 15 of those games. OKC will be hoping to make it 16 when it’s all said and done. The first Game 7 in NBA Finals history came back in 1951 when the Rochester Royals beat the New York Knicks on their home court. That would start a streak of 8 straight home teams winning Game 7s in the NBA Finals.
The first team to win a Game 7 on the road: the Boston Celtics in 1969. They went into The Forum in Los Angeles and beat the Lakers 108-106. The Celtics would do it again five years later when they beat the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 7 of the 1974 Finals.
We did it, Cleveland. #NBAChampions | #OneForTheLand pic.twitter.com/7Hndm6YaB1
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) June 20, 2016
The Washington Bullets were the next team to beat a team under their own roof in Game 7 when they downed the Seattle SuperSonics in 1978. After that the home teams would win seven straight NBA Finals Game 7s until the Cavaliers beat the Warriors in 2016. We haven’t seen a Game 7 in the Finals since then, and as they say, throw history out the window when two teams are battling for 48 minutes for a chance to win the title.
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