'Worst way to ... ': World No 1 Magnus Carlsen expresses disappointment over Oklahoma City Thunder's NBA triumph

Magnus Carlsen expressed disappointment that the Oklahoma City Thunder won their first NBA title on his wife’s birthday.The Thunder, who led the league in defensive rating during both the regular season and the playoffs, turned in another gem in Game 7 of the NBA Finals—a 103–91 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Sunday night.

Oklahoma City held the Pacers to 41.4% shooting in the decisive game, well below the 48.4% Indiana had averaged in the playoffs.

The Thunder also forced 21 turnovers and blocked eight shots.The World No. 1 chess player wrote on X: "Worst way to start the day when I open the NBA app in no-spoilers mode, click on 'All Possessions.' It shows images of Haliburton going down and OKC celebrating before the video even starts. Oh well, happy birthday to my wife, I guess."

Oklahoma City captured the franchise's first championship since 1979, when the team was known as the Seattle SuperSonics.Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the regular season MVP and now the Finals MVP, posted 29 points, 12 assists, and 5 rebounds. He became just the third player to record at least 25 points and 12 assists in an NBA Finals Game 7, joining Walt Frazier and Jerry West.

The Pacers suffered a devastating blow early in the first quarter when Tyrese Haliburton injured his Achilles while driving to the basket.

After suffering a calf strain in Game 5, Haliburton had fought through the pain in Game 6 and tried to gut it out in the final game of the series, according to NBA reports.According to NBA.com, the Thunder entered the 2024–25 season as the youngest team in the league, with an average age of 24.148 years. Based on calculations from NBAAge.com, the Thunder currently have the second-lowest average age in the league overall, and the sixth-lowest when factoring in player minutes.Following their triumph, Oklahoma City will host a Champions Parade on June 24 in downtown Oklahoma City.