- 6/16/2025
OKC’s loudest fan talks belly paint, SGA vs. KD, and why “Thundor” is more than a costume.
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00:00What's your message to Pacers fans?
00:02Y'all are really nice and I appreciate you coming down and hanging out, but...
00:08Okay, we are here with Thunder superfan Garrett Haviland, aka Thundor.
00:21Thank you so much for joining us today.
00:23So I want to start with how you sort of got into this character as the superfan.
00:30You know, I've been born and raised in Oklahoma, so I've been waiting my entire life for a professional sports franchise to come to Oklahoma.
00:40And so I was 22 years old when the Thunder came.
00:44They had an ultimate fan competition.
00:46And so I think all those 22 years of anticipation just kind of exploded onto the scene.
00:51And out comes Thundor, right?
00:55Could you sort of tell me about what your favorite moment as a Thunder fan has been over these past number of years?
01:04The first time that I felt like the Thunder really arrived onto the national scene was when they were playing the eventual champion, the Lakers.
01:13And, you know, they're a massive underdog.
01:16And when the Thunder tied that series up 2-2 at home, I mean, that's probably the first time in my life I can remember Bricktown being like a hub of entertainment and fun.
01:27And going out that night is a night that I'll never forget.
01:30The feeling I had leaving that arena, feeling like we can hang with the big dogs was an amazing feeling.
01:36I've danced like I've never danced before that night, so I totally enjoyed every minute of that.
01:41And then the way that they lost that series on a clutch putback by Pau Gasol in the waning seconds, I was front and center for that.
01:50And watching Collison not get that rebound still plays in these minds today.
01:56It's something that I've thought about many a times every time I get into a playoff run.
02:00And, you know, instead of being defeated and upset that the Thunder lost in six and the crowd, you know, leaving, the crowd stayed and they gave the guys a standing ovation.
02:09And I think the atmosphere there was kind of established in that first playoff run.
02:15Of course, you know, 2012 winning the Western Conference Championship on home court, watching Kevin Durant go and hug his mom and embrace in tears.
02:25That was a really special moment, even though, you know, since then it's kind of soured.
02:28But now, you know, something I've been saying all year long is that this team, this season feels different.
02:36Anybody who asked me, man, how do you feel like the team's doing?
02:39What do you think about this?
02:41My general consensus answer is it just feels different.
02:44It feels special.
02:46And it feels like the time is now.
02:49The door is open.
02:50The Thunder just need to run through it.
02:52Do you remember sort of learning when you were 22, when the Supersonics were moving to OKC to become the Thunder?
03:01Do you remember learning that news and how you felt then?
03:05Yeah, it definitely was very bittersweet.
03:07Like, I mean, I know that for my end, it was nothing but adulation and excitement.
03:12But I could also imagine, like, what it would be to lose a team that has been most beloved by the people of Seattle.
03:18And I know that it still sets rough with them today.
03:21Talking about that early team with Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden.
03:27Obviously, all of them went on to win MVPs.
03:31Kevin Durant won it with Oklahoma City.
03:33How would you compare the feeling of that sort of young core to this one with SGA and J-Dub and Chet right now?
03:41You know, being here in Oklahoma City when that young core was developing, there was a lot of camaraderie and excitement behind it.
03:48But you'd also get some of these little, like, you know, secondary, secondhand accounts of some turmoil or some jealousy between the players.
03:56And it just wasn't quite the type of group that we have now.
03:59And I think if you want to compare 2012 to this season, that's where you've got to start.
04:04It's the camaraderie and the togetherness.
04:07And I think that the 2012 team definitely had that to some degree.
04:11By no means do I think they were, like, fighting in the locker room or anything.
04:14But I do think there was this, you know, thought in the back of their minds, right?
04:18Because Harden wanted to be the band.
04:20He wanted to have his own team eventually.
04:23You have Russ and KD who are kind of like, who's going to be the hero of the day?
04:28And that's what they often called it back then, is hero ball.
04:31It wasn't team ball.
04:33And now Oklahoma City is playing that.
04:35Sure, we have the MVP on the team.
04:38We have a tremendous leader in SGA.
04:41But he's going to make sure everybody gets theirs.
04:43Everybody's going to pitch in.
04:45You've got people like Wiggins who are willing to not play one game and then come in and drop 20 on somebody.
04:50So you have this understanding.
04:52Everybody knows their role.
04:53They're willing to play it for the ultimate goal of the championship.
04:56You've interacted with a number of different players, especially when they're at the free throw line.
05:04What have been some sort of notable interactions that you've had with players that just kind of come to mind?
05:10Yeah, I mean, you know, anytime I think about, like, the free throw defense that we play here in Oklahoma City
05:16and the impact that we have, my first thoughts always go to the players who are visibly laughing.
05:21Like, if I got somebody straight up laughing, then I know that I'm in their head, that they're watching me.
05:27And I've only had that happen a handful of times.
05:30And those players that's happened to you are Kenyon Martin when he played for the Nuggets,
05:35Damian Wilkins when he played for the Hawks, Dwight Howard throughout his career.
05:39But I've mentioned it before, the problem with Dwight Howard is that I think he probably shot better free throw percentages
05:45when he came to Oklahoma City than he did for his entire career because he enjoyed that camaraderie.
05:50Like, it's like he wanted to make his free throws more because he saw some fat, jolly guy trying to distract him.
05:56So I kind of appreciated that.
05:58And every time he hit a free throw, he'd give me a wink and a smile.
06:01So, you know, there is some of that give and take with some of the players.
06:04Yeah, I can see how you have that back and forth with some of the goofier guys in the NBA.
06:10As far as your belly paintings, you're famous for them at this point.
06:15What are some that stick out to you?
06:18If you would like to give a top 10 ranking of, like, Thundor's belly painting,
06:22I'm pretty sure that anything that's been painted by Chase Dryden,
06:26my old college roommate who's now a tattoo artist at the Oklahoma Tattoo Collective,
06:31I'm sure he probably takes, you know, six or seven of the top 10 paintings are his
06:36because he's the most gifted artist that I know personally.
06:40And he probably takes the number one spot with the Kobe belly painting that he did.
06:46And we decided that we were going to do, you know, a little nod to Kobe during his last away game
06:52because he came to Oklahoma City for his last away game of his career.
06:56And, you know, he had a storied career.
06:57He can be debated as one of the goats of the game.
07:01And so we did Farewell.
07:03Then we had Kobe when he's biting his jersey.
07:06And we had the black mamba symbol on there.
07:08And the detail that Chase was able to capture in that belly painting was really amazing.
07:14And then that belly painting went, you know, super viral.
07:19I mean, it's probably the most that my phone has ever blown up
07:21or that my social media has ever gone crazy.
07:24I mean, you look at the introduction of SportsCenter, CBS Sports, USA Today, on and on and on.
07:32Just everybody, you know, had an image of that Kobe belly painting.
07:36And then for Kobe to sadly pass away a few years later, the whole Farewell idea kind of carried a really deep dual meaning.
07:45And so that belly paint is always going to be up there in the top belly paints that I've ever had done for sure.
07:51It's kind of crazy that it was to honor an opposing player, which is kind of weird.
07:56But, you know, I think that speaks to Kobe and his impact on the game.
08:00Outside of that, it goes to like a lot of my holiday belly paintings, whether it's Easter themed or Valentine's Day, Halloween.
08:07I mean, you know, those are ones that I typically will try to bring up during the regular season to really kind of pop.
08:13So those have always been pretty fun.
08:15And then my personal favorite, just because of the when the NBA was pushing the whole big, big moments happen here.
08:25And it was B.I.G. and the I was the NBA logo.
08:28I got that painted on me.
08:30And I always really like that, that belly painting, that picture.
08:33You know, I'm a big guy.
08:34I got the word big on my belly.
08:36It just it just fit really well.
08:38So, you know, thanks, NBA, for thinking of me when you were making up your big slogan.
08:42I appreciate that.
08:43I want to talk a little bit about your work outside of being Thundor.
08:48It's my understanding that you're a behavioral health worker.
08:52And then could you talk a little bit about that and then kind of how the emotionality of it kind of corresponds with your your being a super fan?
09:02Sure. So I work with individuals with developmental disabilities.
09:08I work with them and their staff.
09:11I do staff trainings.
09:13I work with the individuals.
09:14I work with their families.
09:16And so one of the core aspects of what we do is to make sure that we preach self-care.
09:22Far too often in life, we get caught up with all the things going on around us and we don't really take time for ourselves.
09:27And so as an advocate for self-care and somebody who's always trying to teach coping skills and ways to handle emotions, being Thundor is like the ultimate version of self-care for me.
09:42It's my way of literally changing out of my work clothes, putting on a whole new persona and getting out whatever frustrations or difficulties I've had throughout the day or in my life and just being able to really cut loose.
09:55And so, you know, I always use that if I'm speaking about self-care or coping skills like, hey, guys, it can get weird.
10:03It doesn't have to be your deep breathing or, you know, going and getting a massage.
10:07It can get it can get, you know, strange, whatever it fits for you.
10:11As long as it works for you, as long as it works and it's safe, then go for it.
10:16You know, Thundor is kind of born out of that.
10:19Also, I always used humor to kind of deflect the bullies and everything growing up.
10:25And so what better way than to than to take the thing that the bullies made fun of before for being a bigger guy and then now use that kind of like my superpower.
10:34Right. So it's been a it's been a wild ride and it's been really weird kind of psychoanalyzing myself for sure.
10:41Over the years, no doubt.
10:44In your assessment, would you prefer prime Kevin Durant or SGA now?
10:51It's really kind of hard, you know, without having a time machine and going back and asking myself in 2012 the same question.
10:57But I mean, I'm going to take SGA over the snake all day.
11:01What would you say is the aspect that scares you the most about the Pacers right now?
11:06Oh, I mean, it's it's clutch time Halliburton.
11:08That is a scary idea in and of itself.
11:11The entire team, when it comes to being crunch time, they just turn it up a whole nother notch.
11:16You've seen it the entire playoffs.
11:18And unfortunately, the Thunder had to see it firsthand in game one.
11:21Is Shea Gilgis Alexander a free throw merchant?
11:24Absolutely not.
11:25When you're leading the league in drives, when your usage rate is as high as it is, you're going to get hacked.
11:30You're going to get hit.
11:31And then you look at the overall comparison to the amount of free throws he shoots versus other greats in the game.
11:38And he's not he's not up there at the top.
11:41So what's your message to Pacers fans?
11:43Y'all are really nice and I appreciate you coming down and hanging out.
11:47But you're going to lose.
11:50And then can we get one quick whoop from you?
11:53Oh, absolutely.
11:54Whoop!
12:01Whoop!
12:01You
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