Oklahoma City Thunder Championship Parade Speeches

Oklahoma City Thunder Championship Parade Speeches

please join me in welcoming to the podium first up Aaron Wiggins okc man oh man what a journey what a journey was it worth it uh to start off we got to show love to the greats and the legends who wore Oklahoma City across their chest and set the foundation before us so that we can celebrate today i came in as a 55th pick oh Nick Collison where Nick Collison at where Nick at come on Nick come on Nick yeah Nick [Applause] i came in as the 55th pick in the 2021 draft in my rookie season we won 24 games 24 games but the best part about coming from that that year is that the same people in this arena today celebrating this championship were the same people there when we were winning 24 games it was the point where they tried to call us the black hole of the NBA but four years later when they mention the Thunder organization when they mention Clay Bennett when they mention Sam Breie when they mention Mark Dagno and every single one of you in this arena they got to mention you at the NBA jail and that’s it [Music] all right hey R can we give it up one more time for Aaron Wiggins one more got one more we got one more we got to get one more all right where’s Lou at i got to ask you some questions [Applause] lou I got you lou [Music] Lou you’ve been with this team for six seasons the start of this run when you think on the journey of what it took for this team to get to where they are right now what it take took a lot uh a lot of hard work um like a lot of sacrifice i mean it was it weren’t easy i mean like like Wig said those those years was tough and now look at us you’re a great example you’re a great example of just grit fight you had to scratch and claw for everything you got in this league undrafted started as a two-way player and now first team all defense what does this mean for you Lou it means a lot i mean for my people uh for my family I mean and the whole city i mean we really deserve this and now look at us we here now lou tell me about this team and how special it is to experience this with them they’re my brothers my brothers them all dogs them all dogs huh no I mean it’s it’s it’s crazy i mean we we really fought hard i mean this whole season it weren’t easy but you know we really did it lou thank you so much congratulations Lou let’s welcome up AC Alex Guso yes sir you got questions for me too cuz I don’t want to follow that you want some questions i got you yeah please you joined this team in the offse coach Dagnel said it feels like you have and Isaiah Hardstein feels like y’all have been a part of this team for three years how are you able to integrate so fast with this group yeah I mean it’s just a great it’s a great group of guys like I got to go to work every day and uh when I showed up here in September uh just getting to hang around the dudes and playing like pickup before training camp I I figured out quickly that like this is a special group of players you know just from like a sense of comp competition and like and like showing up to work every day and going to work and uh that’s what I’m about that’s why I’m here you know 9 years later uh we won a championship like now we’re standing up here on the stage talking about this is crazy it’s crazy i don’t know if you guys know this but this is Alex Cruso’s second NBA title but two times but but it’s just his first championship parade how much have you been looking forward to this right now i just told I just told Dub and Lou I said this is the first thing I’ve gotten to celebrate for like do do for the first time with this group like this is my first experience i’m so hyped i’m ready to go on the I’m ready to get on the bus last thing for you AC this crowd has been so endeared to you what does this mean what has this crowd meant to you since you’ve been here man y’all are the best i tell you what like I showed up i Yeah give it up for yourselves give it up for yourselves give yourself a hand y’all deserve it man y’all you know I I I I uh like we said I was here nine years ago as exhibit 10 and I got to I got to just experience it from the outside looking in um and to come back here uh I knew you know playing here over the years this place always gets juiced no matter how good the team was how bad the team was what was going on um you know they had the they had the electric electricity thunder thing going on everybody’s excited y’all are doing your thing and so I knew when I when I got traded here just to to be a part of this and to get to play in front of this type of arena like this type of fan base this is what I live for like this is what I feed off of i think there was a great uh mutual energy shared between me and the crowd this year and uh that’s that’s a big reason why you know we we talked about it as a team two game sevens at home like y’all are the difference you know y’all y’all are part of the reason why we won this thing so thank you thank you everybody ac congratulations appreciate y’all can we get Queso to come up to the stage [Applause] how you feeling Queso i feel good you know everybody always saying that I look like a rapper so I was going to you know drop a few balls and stuff but no I’mma chill i’mma chill i feel good right now case I think it’s hard for everyone to remember that this is just your second NBA season what has this journey been like for you you know I came in to a great team already so just learning from these guys from the first day that I stepped in the door um it actually started before that you know when I came out here for my little interview or whatever my job interview uh they showed they treated me like I was a part of the team already and you know ever since I got drafted the guys you know hit me up you know saying they was ready to get to work and all that so I’m just glad that I’m a part of this team and um I’m I’m able to experience this with these guys okay so tell me about what it’s like to experience this alongside your brothers right here uh it’s great you know I’ve seen them put the work in they seen me put the work in so all of us being able to live out our dreams um at a different point in our career something that no not everybody gets to accomplish so it’s just great case congratulations thank you so much thank you where’s Kenny Hustle [Music] okay Steve what’s up baby what’s up make some noise man make some noise i’m going just say a few things hey God is good for sure hey I want to say this too we done played in every arena in this in this league and you guys are the best fans in the world man i promise you that that’s all I got to say thank y’all check come on down oh [Applause] heavy [Applause] no I got it i got it we’re good chad your journey has been far from easy you have experienced broken bones bruises ups downs highs lows what did it take for you to get here in this moment right now took everybody that’s in here it It started It started with Clay Sam and Mark for believing in me enough to bring me here in the first place cuz without them I’m never even here all right let me lock in we Do you want We want Should we please you on the mic right now do that all right yeah all right do that but yeah I just got to say thank you to those three first and then after that it’s all my teammates uh without them none of this is possible it’s really a full team effort uh and then from there it takes the fans in the city they bring it every single night so we got to do the same thing and I’m And I’m sure y’all going to bring it today too congratulations Chad jdub [Music] [Applause] what have the last 48 hours been like for you um for me alcohol for the first time so that was cool uh [Applause] I’m pretty sure there’s going to be pretty more of that coming up so um but it it’s been surreal god is good um to be in the position I’m in looking back literally 3 years ago today I got drafted here so it’s been it’s been crazy to to come into the team and the organization that I have you You can’t make this up and we got it done kind of quick I would say for the most part so it’s been it’s been dope j we saw you with a wave of emotion once you realized that what this team had accomplished when you realized that what was going through your head i realized the cameras were looking at me so I I had to hurry up and stop crying um but no this is it’s crazy just for me in 3 years how much has changed and how good we got from the moment I stepped in till now um the fans have always been consistent whether we’re winning or losing you guys are seriously the best fans in the NBA but no it’s it it was crazy so many emotions almost like a little bit of relief too just to finally get the job done and you know now we’re going to enjoy this moment for sure last thing for you you make the All-Star team for the first time this season all defensive second team and now you add NBA champions to that list of accomplishments what has this season been like for you pretty successful appreciate it j well it’s not just me j Will all right you’ve been one of the loudest voices on this team you might not even need the microphone to talk right now all right what has it been like to do this with this group tell me about the camaraderie the chemistry what makes this team so special it’s hot up here uh yeah these my these my brothers um I know y’all see us as a team or we’re Oklahoma City Thunder but like we’re a family first and when I look at these line of guys line of coaches Sam Mark uh everybody up here we’re we’re a family we’re a family and y’all see the postgame interviews y’all see the Tik Toks y’all see the social media but like that’s just scratching the surface of what we are as a team and um like these my dogs we these my dogs that’s it what was this like for you to experience winning an NBA championship and be able to do it in this building on this home court in front of these fans yeah um it was incredible we don’t get it done without y’all so So y’all y’all y’all y’all should have wore a jersey but we don’t get it done without y’all um the homec court advantages we have the best homec court advantage in the league um being able to be here have my family here with me um being able to share this experience I’m sure all the guys feel the same sharing this experience with their family like there’s nothing in the world that tops this so um you dream of it as a kid and it’s everything I ever dreamed of congratulations Jwell isaiah Hartenstein ladies and gentlemen okc what’s up man y’all good yo yo love y’all uh my son didn’t want to be here today he would rather watch Elmo at home so um I kind of let him do his own thing i mean so yeah I think everyone wants to know is he well rested now slept through the entire trophy presentation he slept through the whole night and then we came back he was like “Nah Dad now you getting up.” So I got I’m on like zero hours of sleep um I gota appreciate my wife she helps me all the time so I got a little rest in every now and then but yeah he he took the show for sure isaiah how special has this season been for you joining this team this year it’s amazing i mean I think just being with these group of guys um being a part of this community um was something really special and that’s what we do it for i mean um every every day we go out there we just don’t play for ourselves we play what’s on front of the jersey and um without y’all we wouldn’t we wouldn’t be here for sure i got to ask you a similar question I asked AC what made it so easy to just jump in with this group and fit in so easily i don’t know they be annoying sometimes but but no it’s just a great group of guys i mean um I think Sam does a great job just building a great culture so um just coming in it was easy easy to fit in um so yeah Isaiah congratulations appreciate y’all and now I want to welcome up your MVP of the league your Western Conference Finals MVP and your finals MVP Shay Gildas Alexander louder louder louder [Applause] go ahead Paris shay would have been Sorry sorry something doesn’t feel right everybody come on i like it i like it everybody get up get up get up get up come on come on behind me behind me behind me come on this way guys come on right there listen i know we’ve been here before come on where the towels shay what have been the emotions going through your head over these last two days just thankful very grateful very blessed so many things go into this um and some of the things are out of your control and uh we’ve all been very lucky to to make it this far in the season be this healthy um and ultimately be this happy you don’t ever want to take that for granted you’ve also been with this team from the start six years ago you joined this organization now NBA champions for those who don’t know you just been stacking days every single day what don’t we see the work that’s done in the dark that leads to a Larry O’Brien trophy around a little yeah a lot of blood sweat and tears now a lot of the world doesn’t see it like you said but everybody in this arena in this city that has been with me for the last six years they were chanting MVP when I was averaging 19 points on a 20 win team they understand they know exactly what it takes and what it looks like y and without them we are not this we see you here you’re surrounded by this team you’ve always been team first tell me about this group and what what they mean to you so many guys have said it but this is like family um we do everything together we we need each other out there we want each other out there uh we win because we have each other we lose because of each other probably because of me sometimes um but yeah we we do everything together and guess what guys we won an NBA championship together yeah we did mic drop moment shay congratulations thank you let’s hear it one more time for your NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, and more speak at Paycom Center to kick off the Oklahoma City Thunder 2025 championship parade.

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