By Michael Kinney
The Oklahoma City Thunder will tip off the 2024 NBA Playoffs Sunday night at the Paycom Center. They won’t know until late Friday night who they will face in the opening round.
However, that hasn’t stopped the franchise from getting preparations started to greet Thunder fans and basketball junkies to more than just a high-intensity playoff game.
The Thunder have announced several events that will take place around Oklahoma City this weekend and next week as part of the return of the NBA playoffs to Oklahoma. That includes Thunder Up in the Park, which will be held at Scissortail Park plaza before every home playoff game.
According to the team. Thunder Up in the Park will include music, games, face painting, and the Michelob ULTRA Beer Garden. Activities are free, open to the public and starts a few hours before the Thunder hits the court.
It’s hard to imagine Thunder Up in the Park rivaling the original Thunder Alley, which brought thousands of fans to the arena just to sit outside and watch the game on the jumbo screen before it was shut down after an unrelated shooting took place in Bricktown.
Even though times have changed and that type of electric energy that was running through the fan base during the 2012 run to the NBA finals may be long gone, Thunder officials are seemingly trying to bring a small piece of that nostalgia back for this year’s playoff run with things like the Thunder Up in the Park.
Thunder Alley was an experience that left Oklahoma City way too soon. It was recreated in other cities around the league and Oklahoma City was quickly forgotten as the originator. When the Toronto Raptors won the NBA title in 2019 as fans encircled their home arena, commentators acted like they had created something that was brand new to the league.
Only time will tell if Thunder Up in the Park will have the same type of impact on the city like Thunder Alley did during its brief tenure. The fact they have already branded it and given it a nice clean and glossy feel is not a good start for those who want the old gritty Thunder alley back.
Regardless, once the ball tip ups and the action starts on the court, that is what will matter the most. But the memories fans take with them from the entire experience is what will last the longest.
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