Thunder Fever: Tulsans say it's contagious
| Updated: 6/08/2012 9:18 am |
Published: 6/07/2012 8:33 pm
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Thunder fever has a grip on Oklahoma, from Tulsa all the way down the turnpike. In case you hadn't heard; The Oklahoma City Thunder won the Wester Conference final and the team is headed to the NBA Championship.
Fans in Tulsa say that the excitement is palpable in the air now that the Thunder are headed to the NBA finals. "I got emotional towards the end and I started crying." Neda Tsosie told FOX23.
In the past, criticism arose over highlighting just one city in the professional basketball teams name but some said that debate can be laid to rest.
"It's not just Oklahoma City it is the whole state," said Thunder fan, Arunn Barnett, "This is Oklahoma's team now."
Fans told FOX23 the win makes them feel a deeper connection to their state. "It's another price thing for Oklahoma," said one Tulsan.
Neda added, "They are a good team and are making Oklahoma look good."
In some cases, people said that the win united Sooners and Cowboys fans and work place foes.
"You see it at work, everybody talks about the Thunder. The people you didn't used to talk to or the ones that you didn't get along are now like, yeah team," said Jan Machen.
Tulsans said the support for the Thunder is not only turning people into proud fans, but proud Oklahomans.
"It'll just bring Oklahoma closer together. With all of the stuff that is happening in Tulsa, I think people just get a hold of this Thunder team and it brings every body together," said Barnett.
Are fans willing to pay the hefty price for tickets to the first game of the NBA finals? Tulsans had mixed responses on where they will be cheering on their team.
"Nosebleeds or not, I'm going," said Arte Laureano, "Four-hundred dollars, go ahead and bump it up to a thousand, it's gonna be a crazy party."
So how much are tickets? The lowest price option on Stub-Hub for a Game One ticket is about four hundred dollars and they go upwards of twelve thousand dollars. Some fans said that price was a little too steep.
"I'm not going to spend that much when you get it on satellite tv for free," Neda said. Other fans are going to different sports bars to watch the game.
The official watch party of the Thunder is held at Fat Daddy's Pub & Grill in Tulsa. The bar and grill has an affiliation with the Thunder Blue Alliance. "The last game I think we were at capacity for the amount of people that showed up for the game," said the owner of the bar, Sean Welborn. "It was wall to wall busy in here."
Thunder fans will stay on the edge of their seats until another game will grip them Tuesday night.
As one fan put it, "I'm just so proud, the boys did good."
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