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Shaquille O’Neal predicts the Thunder and Cavaliers will make the 2025 NBA Finals
Zach Wolpin is an NBA and NFL expert who's been betting on the league for over three years now. Wolpin has been a fan of the NBA and has been watching for a decade and a half. He covers the latest news and stories surrounding the league daily. His passion in life is watching sports and being able to share that through his sports writing. He has written about the NBA and other sports leagues through various media outlets over the years like Sir Charles In Charge, G-Men HQ, and TAP into South Plainfield. Before he became an NBA News Writer, Wolpin attended Montclair State University where he graduated in 2021. He studied Sports Media and Writing while in school.
All posts by Zach WolpinUpdated5 hours ago on January 15, 2025
The 2024-25 NBA season is about halfway through on Wednesday, January 15. Most teams have played 38-40 games. In the Eastern Conference, the Cavaliers are in first place with a 34-5 record. They are coming off a hard-fought 127-117 win on the road vs. Indiana. Cleveland has a six-game lead on the Celtics who are second in the East.
As for the Western Conference, the Oklahoma City Thunder are in first place at 33-6. The team is 9-1 in their last 10 and has won three in a row. OKC has a six-and-a-half-game lead over the Rockets in the West. On Tuesday night, TNT’s Shaquille O’Neal made his prediction for the NBA Finals in 2025. O’Neal believes Oklahoma City and Cleveland will make it “for a fact.”
Did Shaquille O’Neal correctly predict the teams who will play in the 2025 NBA Finals?
Thunder vs Cavs in The Finals? 🔮
“That’s what I know will happen for a fact” – @SHAQ pic.twitter.com/IMTF1emDdW
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) January 15, 2025
In the Eastern and Western Conference in 2024-25, the teams at the top have made their presence known. Cleveland and Oklahoma City have been #1 in their respective conferences for some time now. They are both still the only teams that have at least 30 wins this season. Donovan Mitchell and the Cavaliers are a league-best 34-5. That is the Cavs’ best start in franchise history and the team is playing at a historic pace. The 2024-25 season is Kenny Atkinson’s first year as head coach and he has the Cavaliers playing at an elite level. Three players average 19+ points per game for Cleveland and they’ve built a selfless culture that the team can build off of each night.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder are a Western Conference-best 33-6 this season. That is the second-best record in the NBA behind the Cavs. Just last week, the Thunder and Cavs met for a regular season matchup. OKC lost 129-122 but the team is not a full strength. Chet Holmgren and Alex Caruso haven’t played in weeks due to injuries but both players are expected to return this season. The West should be nervous about how well the Thunder are playing without a full healthy roster. Will OKC and Cleveland make a run to the 2025 NBA Finals?
