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The NBA Finals kick off on Thursday night in a battle of two small-market teams who have proven they belong.

The title will run through Oklahoma City , as the Thunder, the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, play host to the Indiana Pacers.

OKC went 68-14 over the regular season with MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leading the way.

As for the Pacers, they are the heavy underdogs, having won 18 fewer games. However, their 50-32 record was good for fourth in the East.

Indiana is in its first Finals since 2000, and history repeated itself this year. Just like that team 25 years ago, they defeated the New York Knicks to get here. They had previously beaten their division rivals in the Milwaukee Bucks and Cleveland Cavaliers

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