The Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA has a lovable mascot named Rumble the Bison. Rumble is an anthropomorphic bison whose name has been derived from the sound of thunder. Rumble made his debut for the Oklahoma City Thunder on February 17, 2009, and has been an inseparable part of the team ever since. Rumble is known to possess great strength and agility, speed and jumps.
The story of Rumble on the Thunder’s website suggests that he was struck by lightning while saving his herd from a wild storm in the Arbuckle Mountains. He gained superpowers after being struck by lightning, and transformed into an anthropomorphic bison.
Rumble is known for entertaining fans on and off the field and also represents his team in community and charity events. He won the NBA Mascot of the Year in 2009. Rumble also won the NBA Mascot Community Impact Award in 2022, after being selected by his fellow mascots in the NBA for his 190 appearances, engaging with over 75,000 fans in the process.
Why is the Thunder mascot a Bison?
Oklahoma City’s state animal is a bison, which is why their mascot, Rumble, is a loveable anthropomorphic bison. He dons a furry brown costume with two horns over his head along with a Thunder jersey. He is known for his tremendous energy and is a great ambassador for the team.
Known to be a larger than life character, Rumble distributes memorabilia, high fives and hugs and is a well-known athlete and dunker. He gets the crowd all hyped up at the beginning of the game with his trademark banging of the bass drum. He has placed various types of drum for different purposes.
According to NBAmascots.com, the person who portrays Rumble the Bison is not yet known, but the character is brought to life by a team of professionally trained performers. The salary of the mascot is not disclosed, but it is estimated that he may earn somewhere between $80,000 to $100,000 per annum. Besides Rumble the Bison, the Thunder also have two other mascots named Thunder and Thunder Jr.
FAQs
A. Oklahoma City Thunder was known as Seattle SuperSonics.
A. Oklahoma City Thunder's arena is Paycom Center.
A. As of March 2025, Professional Basketball Club LLC has the ownership of the Oklahoma City Thunder.
A. As of March 2025, 28 mascots are active in the NBA.
