So transfixed by not only the team, but also the city, Anderson’s magazine story was the precursor to “Boom Town” — Anderson’s book, published in 2018, that intertwines the rise of Oklahoma City with Thunder basketball. “Boom Town” is equal parts historical and hysterical in telling the story of Oklahoma City.

Heading back to Paycom Center for Game 5, the Oklahoma City Thunder must outperform an Indiana Pacers team who thrives in road environments.

SportsLine's model simulated Oklahoma City vs. Indiana 10,000 times and revealed its NBA picks for Monday's NBA Finals 2025 Game 5 contest

The modern iteration of the city, of course, is not just shaped by its urban renewal, but by the never-healing scar of being subject to the worst domestic terrorist attack in U.S. history — the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in 1995, which killed 168 people.

The NBA Finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers are tied 2-2 after OKC overcame a double-digit deficit in Game 4 to even the series. OKC outscored the Pacers 12-3 in the final 3:34 of the game and will now go back to having home-court advantage.

When the Seattle SuperSonics relocated to Oklahoma City in 2008, the franchise needed a new identity, but OKC Thunder wasn't always the front-runner.