When do the Oklahoma City Thunder players receive their NBA championship rings?
The Thunder head into the 2025-26 NBA season as reigning champions, after defeating the Pacers in last year’s Finals.
The Oklahoma City Thunder players and staff are due to receive their championship rings this midweek, as the reigning kings of the NBA kick off their defense of the Larry O’Brien Trophy on Opening Night.
Led by league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder beat the Indiana Pacers in the 2025 NBA Finals in June - a victory that earned the franchise its first championship since moving to Oklahoma in 2008.
Gilgeous-Alexander also won the Finals MVP award, making the Canadian guard the first player since LeBron James - in 2013 - to clinch both MVP accolades in the same season.
When is the Thunder’s championship ring ceremony?
Oklahoma City’s championship rings are set to be presented shortly before the new NBA season’s curtain-raising game, which sees the Thunder host the Houston Rockets on Tuesday, October 21.
The championship-ring ceremony will also see the franchise unfurl its 2024-25 title-winning banner inside Paycom Center.
“Close of one chapter (that we will always celebrate)”
Ahead of Opening Night, Oklahoma City’s mayor, David Holt, has officially declared Tuesday as OKC Thunder Day, urging residents of the ‘Big Friendly’ to celebrate the event by sporting Thunder gear.
“Before the game, a permanent championship banner will be unveiled at our arena and the players will receive their championship rings,” Holt wrote on social media last week.
“Other commemorations will be revealed around the city. It is the close of one chapter (that we will always celebrate) and the start of another.
“And so it is most appropriate that I do hereby proclaim Tuesday, October 21st, 2025 to be OKC THUNDER DAY in Oklahoma City and do encourage our residents to mark the occasion by wearing Thunder apparel, display Thunder flags and signage, show support on social media and otherwise commemorate our city’s first NBA Championship.”
Rockets vs Thunder: tipoff time, how to watch
Tipoff at Paycom Center is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT. The game will air nationally on NBC and Peacock. You can also stream the matchup on the online platform fubo, which offers a free trial.
The exact time of the championship-ring ceremony has not been confirmed. However, KOCO News 5’s Jonathan Greco notes: “If it’s like other special presentations […] it’ll be a few minutes before tip-off and after the last pregame shootaround.
Thunder odds-on for NBA title repeat
The Thunder, who head into the 2025-26 campaign with a 4-2 preseason record, are the bookmakers’ favorites to secure a second straight championship. Per Oddschecker, Mark Daigneault’s men have moneyline odds of +250 to retain their title, ahead of the +700 Denver Nuggets.
The +1800 Rockets, who have added 15-time All-Star and former Thunder favorite Kevin Durant to their ranks, are chasing their first NBA championship since 1995. In 2024-25, Houston was eliminated by the Golden State Warriors in the opening round of the postseason.
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