“That’s a red flag” – Isiah Thomas calls out OKC Thunder coach Mark Daigneault for late lineup shuffle in Game 1 loss to Pacers

In Game 1 of the 2025 NBA Finals, the OKC Thunder were in front for most of the contest. However, that changed late in the game after the Thunder made a lineup change. Coach Mark Daigneault opted for a smaller team with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort, Alex Caruso, Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace.

The Thunder lacked rim protection late in the fourth quarter as Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein remained on the bench. This made the Pacers mount a comeback to secure the 111-110 victory. In the final moments of the game, All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton knocked down a clutch mid-range shot over the defense.

Ahead of Game 2 on Sunday, two-time NBA champion Isiah Thomas revealed his thoughts on the Thunder’s collapse. According to him, it was an error on Daigneault’s part to make a change during the crucial moment of the game.

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“I thought OKC made an adjustment," Thomas said. "Mark made an adjustment before the game even started by changing his lineup. All of us know, from sitting here, we are creatures of havoc. And we won 68 games and we’ve come to the NBA Finals and you change the lineup, that’s a red flag.”

The coach's decision to make a change proved to be crucial for both teams, especially the Thunder. It eliminated their rebounding and interior defense. Although they had Caruso and Dort in the mix, the two elite perimeter defenders weren't enough.

In the fourth quarter, the Pacers outworked the OKC Thunder in the rebounding department. The winning team had 15 rebounds, while the other team only had six.

OKC Thunder's coach is opting not to play Holmgren and Hartenstein together to start Game 2

The OKC Thunder is determined to explore other options for their team. During the regular season and early parts of the playoffs, Mark Daigneault would often put Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein together in the starting lineup.

However, he's staying away from that approach in Game 2 and will have the German-American center come off the bench. When asked about it, he said that he's exploring a lot of optionality with their lineup.

"That's not necessarily predictive of the rest of the series," Daigneault said. "That's just where we started the series. That lineup has been very good for us and has very strong strengths and if we think it can help us in a game or in a portion of a game, then we're to going to do it."

Coach Daigneault has opted to have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cason Wallace, Luguentz Dort, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren start the game.

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Reign Amurao

Reign Amurao specializes in basketball at Sportskeeda, bringing 3 years of experience to his role and a Bachelor's Degree in Communication.

A fervent supporter of the Phoenix Suns, Reign was hooked to their electrifying "Seven-Seconds-Or-Less" offense, which epitomizes high-paced and high-intensity basketball. For Reign, Steve Nash is the ultimate floor general, and he believes Boris Diaw could've been the next Magic Johnson if he had a bit more discipline. 

From Reign's perspective, Anthony Edwards is a 90s player stuck in modern times, and Gregg Popovich is an ultimate winner with unparalleled success and leadership in the sport.

Reign's expertise lies in NBA history, particularly the significant moments and trends of the 2000s and 2010s. He prioritizes in-depth research using only credible sources to maintain accuracy in his articles, and avoids misleading topics.

Beyond basketball, Reign enjoys gaming with friends and watches comedy shows and films.

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