INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder have two of the NBA's best offenses.
But this year's title hopes may swing on the other facet: Who has the better defense?
While both teams made major improvements from last season's respective rosters in the conference finals and conference semifinals, Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, who led Dallas on its only title run in 2010-11 knows just how difficult the challenge can be, especially against Oklahoma City.
“Their depth of great defenders is staggering,” he said before listing names. “ Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander) is a great scorer, but he's also a great competitor. You've got Jalen Williams, you've got (Lu) Dort, you've got (Alex) Caruso, and a bunch of other guys. People talk about (Aaron) Wiggins, Cason Wallace and all these guys are great competitors. And then they've got the rim protection to go along with it.”
That combination helped the Thunder win a league-high 68 regular-season games while earning the top seed in the Western Conference for the second straight year.
Apparently, it was just a warmup. During the franchise's first Finals run since 2012, the Thunder's scoring defense has been even stingier — allowing just 106.3 points per game compared with 107.6 over the first 82 games — while yielding fewer than 100 points in half of their 12 postseason wins.
While Indiana has not matched those numbers, they eliminated three teams — New York, Cleveland and Milwaukee — that each averaged more than 115 points during the regular season. In 16 playoff games, they held those three teams below their averages 11 times.
Naturally, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault has been taking notes.
“If you look at this playoff run, you’ll see how challenging they are for their opponents, and the way they defend contributes to their team identity. It’s not just offense," he said. “Their defensive philosophy is very much aligned with their offensive philosophy, so it creates a certain air to the game when you play against them. It is difficult to play against, as you can see from the way that they’ve really run through the Eastern Conference to get here.”
Their rosters were constructed in similar fashions, too.
Both teams are young, rely on deep benches to wear down opponents late and feast on turnovers. The Thunder average a postseason best 21.3 points per game off turnovers while the Pacers are second at 18.5.
But with so much focus on the high-scoring, up-tempo offenses, it's easy to overlook their defenses or worse — see it as a glaring weakness.
A year ago, Indiana gave up 120.2 points per game in the regular season. This year that number dropped to 115.1, and in the postseason it's down to 113.3.
What changed?
Indiana's top three defenders — Aaron Nesmith, Andrew Nembhard and Myles Turner — are all relatively healthy now.
Nesmith missed 2 1/2 months with a sprained left ankle before returning in January and working his way back into game shape. He sprained his right ankle in Game 3 of the conference finals against the New York Knicks but played in each of the final three games.
Nembhard also missed nearly a month early this season with tendinitis in his left knee, and Turner, Indiana's rim protector, has overcome an assortment of nagging injuries.
But Indiana also changed its forcus after getting swept by Boston in 2024.
“Last year, all that was being said was we couldn't win because we didn't guard anybody and all we do is try to outscore people,” two-time All-Star Tyrese Haliburton said. “We've taken such a big step on the defensive end as a group, and I think the step we made on that end of the floor is why we're here. We've got our work cut out for us (in this series).”
Neither Carlisle nor Daigneault would disclose their defensive assignments entering Game 1 though there's a good chance Nembhard and Nesmith will somehow find themselves pitted against Gilgeous-Alexander, the league MVP, and Williams.
On the flip side, Oklahoma City may deploy its two all-NBA defenders, Williams and Dort, against the combination of Haliburton and Nembhard.
But regardless of the assignments, this is a matchup of wills most believe will determine the next NBA champion.
“All tests are fun, and we get to do it on the biggest stage any of us have ever played on," Williams said. "So it’ll be a very fun challenge. Like I said, that’s a really good team. Obviously, they’re in the finals for a reason. Nobody just waltzes into the finals. So it’ll be our ultimate test.”
AP Sports Writer Cliff Brunt in Oklahoma City also contributed to this report.
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Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) works toward the basket as Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren (7) and guard Luguentz Dort (5) defend during the second half of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs, Wednesday, May 28, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Kyle Phillips)
Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) defends against New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) during the first half of Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs in Indianapolis, Saturday, May 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) defends against New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) during the second half of Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs in Indianapolis, Saturday, May 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranians could call abroad on mobile phones Tuesday for the first time since communications were halted during a crackdown on nationwide protests in which activists said at least 646 people have been killed.
Several people in Tehran were able to call The Associated Press and speak to a journalist there. The AP bureau in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, was unable to call those numbers back. The witnesses said SMS text messaging still was down and that internet users in Iran could connect to government-approved websites locally but nothing abroad.
The witnesses gave a brief glimpse into life on the streets of the Iranian capital over the four and a half days of being cut off from the world. They described seeing a heavy security presence in central Tehran.
Anti-riot police officers, wearing helmets and body armor, carried batons, shields, shotguns and tear gas launchers. They stood watch at major intersections. Nearby, the witnesses saw members of the Revolutionary Guard's all-volunteer Basij force, who similarly carried firearms and batons. Security officials in plainclothes were visible in public spaces as well.
Several banks and government offices were burned during the unrest, they said. ATMs had been smashed and banks struggled to complete transactions without the internet, the witnesses added.
However, shops were open, though there was little foot traffic in the capital. Tehran's Grand Bazaar, where the demonstrations began Dec. 28, was to open Tuesday. However, a witness described speaking to multiple shopkeepers who said the security forces ordered them to reopen no matter what. Iranian state media had not acknowledged that order.
The witnesses spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.
Many remain concerned about a possible military strike by the U.S., even as President Donald Trump has said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington.
“My customers talk about Trump’s reaction while wondering if he plans a military strike against the Islamic Republic,” said shopkeeper Mahmoud, who gave just his first name out of concerns for his safety. “I don’t expect Trump or any other foreign country cares about the interests of Iranians.”
Reza, a taxi driver who also gave just his first name, said protests also remain front of mind for many.
“People — particularly young ones — are hopeless but they talk about continuing the protests," he said.
Meanwhile, it appeared that security service personnel were searching for Starlink terminals as people in northern Tehran reported authorities raiding apartment buildings with satellite dishes. While satellite television dishes are illegal, many in the capital have them in their homes and officials broadly had given up on enforcing the law in recent years.
On the streets, people also could be seen challenging plainclothes security officials, who were stopping passersby at random.
State television also read a statement about mortuary and morgue services being free — a signal some likely charged high fees for the release of bodies amid the crackdown.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking to the Qatar-funded satellite news network Al Jazeera in an interview aired Monday night, said he continued to communicate with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff.
The communication “continued before and after the protests and are still ongoing," Araghchi said. However, “Washington’s proposed ideas and threats against our country are incompatible.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Iran’s public rhetoric diverges from the private messaging the administration has received from Tehran in recent days.
“I think the president has an interest in exploring those messages,” Leavitt said. “However, with that said, the president has shown he’s unafraid to use military options if and when he deems necessary, and nobody knows that better than Iran.”
Meanwhile, pro-government demonstrators flooded the streets Monday in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, which appeared to number in the tens of thousands, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”
Others cried out, “Death to the enemies of God!” Iran’s attorney general has warned that anyone taking part in protests will be considered an “enemy of God,” a death-penalty charge.
Trump announced Monday that countries doing business with Iran will face 25% tariffs from the United States. Trump announced the tariffs in a social media posting, saying they would be “effective immediately.”
It was action against Iran for the protest crackdown from Trump, who believes exacting tariffs can be a useful tool in prodding friends and foes on the global stage to bend to his will.
Brazil, China, Russia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates are among economies that do business with Tehran.
Trump said Sunday that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.
“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”
Iran, through the country’s parliamentary speaker, warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if Washington uses force to protect demonstrators.
More than 10,700 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the latest death toll early Tuesday. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 512 of the dead were protesters and 134 were security force members.
With the internet down in Iran, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government hasn’t offered overall casualty figures.
This frame grab from videos taken between Jan. 9 and Jan. 11, 2026, and circulating on social media purportedly shows images from a morgue with dozens of bodies and mourners after crackdown on the outskirts of Iran's capital, in Kahrizak, Tehran Province. (UGC via AP)
A picture of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is set alight by protesters outside the Iranian Embassy in London, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media shows protesters dancing and cheering around a bonfire as they take to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)
In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)
FILE - Protesters march on a bridge in Tehran, Iran, on Dec. 29, 2025. (Fars News Agency via AP, File)
