Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
Audio By Carbonatix
The scenes following the immediate aftermath of the Oklahoma City Thunder celebrating their NBA title has been going viral for the apparent lack of passion displayed by the players relative to other professional sports leagues.
Give that Game 7 of the NBA Finals came just a few days after Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Edmonton Oilers and victorious Florida Panthers, comparisons were immediately drawn between the two championship squads, with fans noticing how much more muted the OKC Thunder’s celebrations were.
The NBA in general confuses me.
Both close out games were pretty big blowouts.
The Panthers acted like this was the first time they’ve won a hockey game in their lives. The Thunder make it seem like they have 4 more games to play.
Just a fascinating difference. pic.twitter.com/YxG44n6ZkV
— Jake Malasek (@jakemalasek) June 23, 2025
The celebrations of the Oklahoma City Thunder were then compared to the most recent champions in the NFL and MLB: the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Dodgers.
Winning a title in the NBA has lost all its aura pic.twitter.com/Ol09yMeqSn
— NFL Memes (@NFL_Memes) June 23, 2025
The NBA and ESPN’s coverage of the Finals also faced scrutiny throughout the entirety of the seven-game-series, with things such as the logos on the court to the pregame presentation to the championship gear receiving criticism.
gotta give it up to espn/abc for giving us one of the worst broadcast performances in finals history. from game 1 to game 7, a masterclass in terrible tv.
— sean yoo (@SeanYoo) June 23, 2025
The Oklahoma City Thunder overcame the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the Indiana Pacers — who lost star guard Tyrese Haliburton early in the game to a torn Achilles — by a score of 103-91, clinching the franchise’s first title since they were the Seattle SuperSonics in 1979.