Rumble the Bison is the official mascot of the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays i ...

, a

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA) franchise based in

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, and ...

. He is an anthropomorphic

bison Bison are large bovines in the genus ''Bison'' (Greek: "wild ox" (bison)) within the tribe Bovini. Two extant and numerous extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American bison, ''B. bison'', found only in North Ame ...

and his name derives from the sound that

thunder Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning pr ...

makes. Rumble debuted on February 17, 2009, as part of the halftime show during the Thunder's game against the

New Orleans Hornets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

. On August 13, 2009, Rumble was awarded the NBA Mascot of the Year award at the NBA's annual mascot meeting in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

. Rumble received the award in recognition of representing the Thunder at various community events throughout the Oklahoma City region. Even though he had only served as the team's official mascot for six months at the time, the mascot program Rumble developed was regarded as one of the best in the NBA. Rumble is a very popular mascot on account of his interaction with fans. He constantly gives hugs, high fives, and T-shirts to fans at random. Rumble's trademark is banging a

bass drum The bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. The instrument is typically cylindrical, with the drum's diameter much greater than the drum's depth, with a struck head at both ends of the cylinder. Th ...

at the start of each game to hype the home crowds. He has played drums of all sizes for a variety of purposes as well. It is estimated that the performer who brings the mascot to life earns between $80000 and $100000 a year.

Official backstory

According to his official backstory on the Oklahoma City Thunder's website, Rumble is the subject of a Native American tale that has been passed down for centuries, which tells of a bison who was struck by lightning while saving his herd from a ferocious storm in the

Arbuckle Mountains The Arbuckle Mountains are an ancient mountain range in south-central Oklahoma in the United States. They lie in Murray, Carter, Pontotoc, and Johnston counties.

. The lightning transformed him into the anthropomorphic, super-powered bison known today as Rumble. When the Thunder arrived in Oklahoma City, he identified with them and joined the team.

References

External links

Official Rumble website
National Basketball Association mascots Oklahoma City Thunder Animal mascots Mascots introduced in 2009 {{OklahomaCity-stub