Pacers crush Thunder, force first NBA Finals Game 7 since 2016; NFL quarterback tier rankings

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This is an article version of the CBS Sports HQ AM Newsletter, the ultimate guide to every day in sports. You can sign up to get it in your inbox every weekday morning here.

🏀 Good morning to all but especially to …

THE INDIANA PACERS

We’re getting the best two words in sports — Game 7 — and there’s hardly a team more deserving of forcing one. The Pacers staved off elimination with a rollicking 108-91 domination of the Thunder. Indiana led by 30 after three quarters, when Oklahoma City pulled its starters.

Normally this is where I put the significant stats, but last night’s performance transcended stats. I mean this sincerely: If you have no rooting interest, how can you not enjoy what the Pacers are doing?

• Tyrese Haliburton played a historically poor Game 5 and was questionable to play in Game 6 due to a calf strain. After a slow start, he found his rhythm and finished with 14 points and five assists in just 23 minutes. Watch how he leads the offense with precision, poise and joy.
• Pascal Siakam had 16 points and 13 rebounds. He’s such a smooth scorer that you rarely realize how explosive of a scorer he is, too. Watch him work in the mid-post, using his size and versatility to go on scoring binges.
• Watch how hard Andrew Nembhard (17 points) and Aaron Nesmith (10 points) work on both ends, tirelessly navigating screens, recovering and bodying up against Oklahoma City’s best players and then sprinting to the other end.
• Watch how Obi Toppin can blossom when he’s playing confidently. He finished with a team-high 20 points.

But most of all, watch T.J. McConnell. He, like Nesmith and Toppin, all Eastern Conference cast-offs, was knocked for plenty of purported weaknesses. But he, like everyone on this roster, has found a way to thrive, his strengths exacerbated in Indy. He had 12 points, nine rebounds, six assists and four steals — just the third player to do that off the bench in a playoff game. He got rebounds against guys a foot taller than him. There have been stretches in this series where he has been the best player on the floor, bar none.

Now maybe, as Brad Botkin writes, he can be the hard-charging bull because he’s coming off the bench and not having to play starter minutes every night. But that does beg the question: if this guy can be this effective, why can’t every backup guard play like this?  

• Botkin: “Suffice it to say, McConnell is doing his job. And then some. Imagine, a guy who wasn’t even drafted a decade ago is registering on Finals MVP boards. He’s a 140-1 long shot at FanDuel (as if long odds are anything new to him), but he’s on the board, and he’s honestly not a bad bet if you want to take a flier on a crazy Game 7. “

Like McConnell, the Pacers are the ultimate underdog, Sam Quinn writes.

OK, enough of a lovefest. The keys to this one were Indiana having just 10 turnovers (after a whopping 23 in Game 5) and forcing 21 Oklahoma City turnovers. That, plus 11 offensive rebounds resulted in the Pacers attempting 18 more shots than the Thunder. James Herbert examined how Indiana dominated OKC.

And let’s not forget: We’re all winners, too. This is the first NBA Finals Game 7 since 2016. I can’t wait for Sunday.

👍 Honorable mentions

🏀 And not such a good morning for …

THE OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER

For as good as the Thunder are — and they are historically good — they go through some awfully rough patches. Down 22 at halftime, their defense finally locked in … but it took them over five minutes to score a point in the third quarter, their offense stagnant and, frankly, ugly.

• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had eight turnovers, several on tendencies the Pacers have shown all series, like doubling him when he turns his back off the dribble.
• Chet Holmgren scored four points on 2-for-9 shooting, often looking lost offensively.
• Oklahoma City was 3 for 20 from 3 through three quarters.
• The bench was outscored 31-6 through three quarters.

That’s bad enough, but they got outworked by Indiana, too. On rebounds. On loose balls. On little details. After 15 blocks and 12 steals in Game 5, they managed just four of each in Game 6.

The Thunder can render this all moot with a Game 7 win, and there’s reason to believe they’ll do so. They’re 18-2 this season (regular season and playoffs) after a loss. They are tremendous at home. But for them to put on this display — in execution, effort and attention to detail — with the chance to lift the Larry O’Brien trophy was disheartening.

👎 Not so honorable mentions

🏈 NFL quarterback tiers: Two NFC East stars join ‘Big Four’ at the top

Debating quarterback tiers is a tale as old as time … or at least a tale as old as the past quarter-century.

Most people will agree there’s a clear top four: Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow. But in his 2025 NFL quarterback tiers, Cody Benjamin has two more in “Tier 1: Transcendent Talents.”

• Benjamin: “Jalen Hurts — The man just gets results. Whether with timely downfield lobs to his playmakers or rugged situational rushing, No. 1 on the Eagles sets the tone with freakish composure. … Jayden Daniels — A smooth cruiser on the ground and a crisp flick-of-the-wrist weapon letting it rip, he was also unflappable under bright lights, taking a squad of overachieving vets to the doorstep of a Super Bowl.”

After those six, there are nine players in “Tier 2: Borderline Stars” and another four in “Tier 3: Promising Prospects.”

Then there’s the six-player “Tier 4: Volatile Veterans,” including one player that will make a jump.

• Benjamin: “Trevor Lawrence — Four years after going No. 1 overall, Lawrence is under pressure to justify the Jaguars‘ lucrative investment in his services. He’s got a snappy arm and flashy young wideouts in Brian Thomas Jr. and Travis Hunter, but hopefully new coach Liam Coen can also help him make sharper decisions.”

Cody’s right that there’s plenty of pressure. I think Lawrence is simply too talented to fail, now that he’s finally equipped with a sound infrastructure.

🏀 Lakers top 10 moments under Buss family ownership

With the Buss family selling the Lakers to Mark Walter, we’ve already taken a look at winners and losers. But what about the past? After all, the Buss family owned the team for nearly a half-century and oversaw 11 titles. Bryan DeArdo ranked the Lakers’ 10 best moments under the Buss family, and No. 1 is …

• DeArdo: “Lakers finally beat the Celtics in 1985 — Making the Lakers’ victory even sweeter was the fact that the series-clinching game took place in the Boston Garden, the site of the Celtics’ blowout victory in Game 1 that was immediately nicknamed the ‘Memorial Day Massacre.’ … Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, called old and over the hill by many after his lackluster Game 1 performance, came back with a vengeance in Game 2, scoring 30 points and collecting 17 rebounds. The then 38-year-old won Finals MVP after scoring 29 points in the Lakers’ series-clinching 111-100 victory.”

📺 What we’re watching this weekend

Friday

⚾ Mariners at Cubs, 2:20 p.m. on MLB Network
⚾ Orioles at Yankees, 7:05 p.m. on MLB Network
⚾ Nationals at Dodgers, 10:10 p.m. on MLB Network

Saturday

🏆 Mubadala Sail Grand Prix, 1 p.m. on CBS
⚾ Tigers at Rays, 12:10 p.m. on MLB Network
🏀 Mercury at Sky, 1 p.m. on ABC
⚾ Rangers at Pirates, 4:05 p.m. on FS1
⚾ Game 1: Coastal Carolina vs. LSU, 7 p.m. on ESPN
⚾ Mets at Phillies or Royals at Padres, 7:15 p.m. on Fox
🏀 Sparks at Lynx, 8 p.m. on NBA TV
⚾ Nationals at Dodgers, 10:10 p.m. on MLB Network

Sunday

🏀 BIG3: Week 2 games, 1 p.m. on CBS
⚾ Rangers at Pirates, 1:35 p.m. on MLB Network
⚾ Game 2: Coastal Carolina vs. LSU, 2:30 p.m. on ABC
🏀 Fever at Aces, 3 p.m. on ESPN
⚾ Mets at Phillies, 7 p.m. on ESPN
⚽ USMNT vs. Haiti, 7 p.m. on Fox
🏀 Liberty at Storm, 7 p.m. on NBA TV
🏀 Game 7: Pacers at Thunder (Series tied 3-3), 8 p.m. on ABC

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