"Jesus loves basketball!" - NBA fans have rib-tickling reactions as OKC Thunder starts game with prayer

Several NBA fans were shocked before the preseason game between the OKC Thunder and Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City. The game began with a prayer from a real pastor, and some fans could not believe it.

A fan on Reddit shared a video of the opening prayer that came from a Christian pastor. It was very surprising for fans, who do not regularly attend Thunder home games and those who do not pay attention to the pregame events.

The Thunder is the only NBA team to hold a prayer at the start of every home game, and it doesn't necessarily have to be a Christian prayer. The team has also invited clergy representing Protestants and Catholics, Rabbis and even Native American leaders.

The OKC Thunder really just opened the game with a Christian prayer and asked the crowd to remodel their hats. byu/DrOzmitazBuckshank innba

However, not many fans know about it, so they reacted on social media. Some made light of the situation that could have bordered on blasphemy, while others were just plain confused about why the game had to start with a prayer.

One fan commented:

"Jesus loves basketball! he is a huge OKC fan didn't you know?"

Comment byu/DrOzmitazBuckshank from discussion innba

One fan corrected everyone and taught what the prayer is really called:

"They've been doing it since the Hornets were in OKC, it’s a 'nondenominational invocation.'"

Comment byu/DrOzmitazBuckshank from discussion innba

Another joked about the OKC Thunder not winning a championship despite being on the good side of the Lord:

"If my team had the likes of Durant, Westbrook and Harden in their primes and not win even a single championship, that'd be the sign Lord Jesus Christ personally hates you."

Comment byu/DrOzmitazBuckshank from discussion innba

Here're other reactions on Reddit to a prayer opening an OKC Thunder game:

Comment byu/DrOzmitazBuckshank from discussion innba

Comment byu/DrOzmitazBuckshank from discussion innba

Comment byu/DrOzmitazBuckshank from discussion innba

Comment byu/DrOzmitazBuckshank from discussion innba

Comment byu/DrOzmitazBuckshank from discussion innba

Comment byu/DrOzmitazBuckshank from discussion innba

Comment byu/DrOzmitazBuckshank from discussion innba

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Origins of OKC Thunder pregame prayer

In an interview with The Deseret News in 2018, OKC Thunder vice-president of broadcasting and corporate communications Dan Mahoney explained the reason for the team's pregame prayers at home.

"It's an invocation. We reach non-denominational. For our fans, it's an opportunity to pray if they want to, to have a moment of silent reflection if they want to or it's really for them to use that time however they want to. We feel people's faith is important to them."

The pregame invocation originally started during the 2005-06 NBA season when the New Orleans Hornets, now the Pelicans, temporarily relocated to Oklahoma City following the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina.

When the Thunder became an official NBA franchise for the 2008-09 season, the franchise kept the pregame invocation, and it has been a part of the team's identity.

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