NBA Finals: 2025 start date, schedule, how to watch, format, history

It's official - the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers will face off in the 2025 NBA Finals.

The Thunder punched their ticket to the Finals for the first time in 13 years by defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves in five games, while the Pacers eliminated the New York Knicks in the East Finals in six games.

Let's get into all you need to know ahead of the 2025 NBA Finals, including dates, schedule, how to watch, and more.

NBA Finals 2025 start date

The 2025 NBA Finals will tip off on Thursday, June 5, 2025.

NBA Finals 2025 schedule

Game	Date	Location	Start time
Game 1	Thursday, June 5	Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK	8:30 PM ET
Game 2	Sunday, June 8	Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK	8 PM ET
Game 3	Wednesday, June 11	Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN	8:30 PM ET
Game 4	Friday, June 13	Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN	8:30 PM ET
Game 5*	Monday, June 16	Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK	8:30 PM ET
Game 6*	Thursday, June 19	Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN	8:30 PM ET
Game 7*	Sunday, June 22	Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK	8 PM ET

*if necessary

How to watch the NBA Finals, TV channel and streaming

The 2025 NBA Finals will be shown exclusively on ABC, with streaming available on any service that carries ABC, such as YouTube TV.

2025 marks the last of a nine-year broadcast rights deal for ESPN and ABC to air the NBA Finals.

NBA Finals series format

The NBA Finals are a best-of-seven game series between the champions of the Eastern and Western Conferences. The team with the better regular season record gets home-court advantage.

The series follows a 2-2-1-1-1 format. This means the team with home-court advantage gets two games at home to start, then two on the road, then back at home for a potential game 5, then on the road again for game 6, and finally back at home for a deciding game 7 (if necessary).

Who has won the most NBA Finals?

The Boston Celtics won their 18th NBA title in 2024, surpassing the Los Angeles Lakers' 17 championships to become the most successful franchise in league history.

Read a full list of NBA Finals winners on site.

NBA Finals MVP award

The NBA Finals MVP award, officially titled the Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player award, is given to the most outstanding player in the NBA Finals.

The 2024 recipient was Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown.