Betway recently listed the Oklahoma City Thunder as the NBA’s No. 1 most hyped fanbase. The Thunder were originally the Seattle SuperSonics from 1967-2008 before relocating from Seattle, Washington, to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The SuperSonics-turned-Thunder had several star players, such as current Power Forward Kevin Durant, also known as “KD,” and the former Power Forward Nick Collison.
The Thunder plays home games at the Paycom Center in downtown Oklahoma City. The Thunder haven’t won an NBA championship since 1979, but the Thunder’s recent rosters show that they are clear favorites in the West. The Thunder’s defense can be described as good, as the Thunder allow just 102.7 points per game per 100 possessions, 3.6 fewer than other teams and 9.8 fewer than the NBA’s average. Read on for further details.
Oklahoma City Thunder Tops Betway’s List
The Oklahoma City Thunder topped Betway’s list as the No. 1 most hyped fanbase in the NBA so far this season. Betway gave the Thunder a hype score of 2.442 out of 3. Betway’s criteria for creating hype scores consists of three categories: positive online sentiment, increase of followers in the past 30 days, and percent increase of followers in the past 30 days. In this instance, Oklahoma City led the other NBA teams with 15%, 13,936, and 59.50%, respectively.
The Oklahoma City Thunder’s runner-up was the Charlotte Hornets, with a hype score of 2.363 out of 3. After the Hornets, the Denver Nuggets finished in third place with a hype score of 2.317. After the Nuggets, the remaining seven teams were the Dallas Mavericks with a 2.209, the Miami Heat with a 2.205, the Orlando Magic with a 2.152, the Houston Rockets with a 2.135, the Atlanta Hawks with a 2.125, the San Antonio Spurs with a 2.122, and the Detroit Pistons with a 2.072.
Despite the Mavericks’ tremendous run to the NBA Finals last year, the Mavericks settled for fourth place in Betway’s list of the No. 1 most hyped fanbases in the NBA. The Mavericks’ hype score was 2.209, which included a 16% positive online sentiment, an increase of 4,620 followers in the past 30 days, and a -66.30% increase of followers in the past 30 days. The short-handed Mavericks are sitting at just 22-17 at the time of the writing. The Mavericks will host the Denver Nuggets, who are 23-15, in a rematch on Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. Central.
Oklahoma City Thunder So Far This Season
The Oklahoma City Thunder can be described as a fun team to watch. The Thunder lead the Western Conference with a comfortable 32-6 record at the time of writing. The Houston Rockets are the runner-up to the Thunder with a 26-12 record. Anything could happen, as the NBA is currently midway through the 2024-25 season. The Rockets could take first place away from the Thunder, but as long as the Thunder recover from their injuries, rebounding, and bench-scoring struggles, they will be all right.
OKC’s Next Steps
The Oklahoma City Thunder currently lead the Northwest Division with a 32-6 record and are above the Denver Nuggets, who are 23-15, the Minnesota Timberwolves, who are 21-18, the Portland Trail Blazers, who are 13-25, and the Utah Jazz, who are 10-28. The Thunder’s NBA title hopes could be improved through their offense, which requires a strong effort from forward Jalen Williams, who has handled additional offensive responsibility in games such as the Thunder and NBA-best Cleveland Cavaliers on January 8, 2025.
The Thunder will conclude their four-game road trip on Tuesday night against the Philadelphia 76ers, who are 15-22, in the Wells Fargo Center at 7:00 p.m. Eastern. The Thunder will look for a three-game winning streak on the road, while the 76ers will try to snap a two-game losing skid at home. The Thunder ruled out Chet Holmgren, Ajay Mitchell, Nikola Topic, Ousmane Dieng, Dillon Jones, and Adam Flagner, while the 76ers ruled out Joel Embiid, Andre Drummond, Kyle Lowry, KJ Martin, and Jared McCain.
