Oklahoma City Thunder

There’s a Thunder fan out there who remembers this team when they went from a seemingly never-ending procession of youngsters with enormous potential to the group that actually has a shot at hoisting the ultimate basketball prize. That fan wants something more than just some orange-and-blue gift-wrap over a product that could’ve been made for any other team. We built this collection with that fan in mind. The diehard who knows exactly how to spell Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who cheers on the developing youngsters with a smile that shows they jumped on board early and have no plans to jump ship. To buy the perfect gift for that fan, you have to skip over the cheesy stuff and start looking for gifts with a bit more thought woven into them. Every item here was chosen because it was earning its spot. We asked ourselves if a real Thunder fan would use it, wear it, hang it on their wall, or grab it while getting ready for game night. If we couldn’t answer yes then it didn’t make this list. Let’s be real: there’s already plenty of OKC merchandise out there. Most of it is completely forgettable. We’re not here to contribute to that. We’re also cheering for a team whose story is far from finished. There’s something special about buying a gift for a team that feels like it’s on the upswing. You aren’t collecting memorabilia from a franchise that spent the better part of two decades chasing its best days. You are getting a gift for someone that watches this team’s story unfold year-by-year, who talks about this particular group of players like they own the place because they’ve earned that right by sticking around for both the bad and the good. If you’re picking up a gift for a birthday, for Christmas, or because you’re a Thunder fan too and saw something that screamed your buddy’s name, we asked ourselves one simple question when compiling this list. Would we give this to the Thunder fan we care about most? Every item here answered that question. If something was on the list because it was available or had a spot open, it got kicked to the sidelines. It earned the spot because it’s truly worth giving.