Watch OKC Thunder receive NBA championship rings during ceremony
In a packed arena filled with Thunder fans, the Oklahoma City Thunder each received a hefty championship ring symbolizing their 2025 NBA Finals win.
As lawmakers in Oklahoma continue to debate how to legalize sports betting, the Oklahoma City Thunder wants to play a primary role in the potential new industry.
Oklahoma remains one of 11 states without legal sports betting as legislators, the governor, tribal governments and other industry insiders like the Thunder have failed to reach an agreement.
More: Gov. Kevin Stitt says he’ll veto sports betting bills that give the tribes exclusive power
Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt has promised to veto any bill that is “exclusively giving a monopoly to the tribes,” while Matthew Morgan, chairman of the Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association, contends that failing to include tribal governments in legalized sports betting would breach established gaming compacts.
The Thunder’s push to join the industry comes amid increased scrutiny of sports betting in the NBA after former and current coaches and players were charged Thursday, Oct. 23 with conspiring to commit fraud, money laundering, illegal gambling and extortion.
The FBI secured multiple indictments for more than 30 people related to their alleged role in the scandal, including Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier. The NBA placed Billups and Rozier on “immediate leave” after they were indicted.
A Thunder-Lakers game in January 2024 is also part of the investigation after a federal grand jury alleged in one indictment that defendant Marves Fairley placed a $100,000 bet against the Lakers after getting inside information from former NBA player Damon Jones that “one of the Lakers’ best players” was injured.
OKC Thunder would earn 0.25% of total handle under proposed model
Lawmakers in Oklahoma were already planning to discuss the future of sports betting in the state on Thursday, before details of the federal indictments came to light and immediately raised questions about the influence of gambling in the NBA and in other sports leagues.
No one who spoke at Thursday’s hearing mentioned the federal indictments.
Speaking to lawmakers, a representative for the OKC Thunder suggested authorizing the Thunder or a tribal consortium the ability to offer a single retail and mobile sports betting license to tribal and state approved operators, such as DraftKings or FanDuel.
Will Syring, vice president of corporate sponsorships for the Thunder, said any license would require all revenues generated from bets placed on the platform to be shared with the collective tribes, and 0.25% of total handle would be provided to the Thunder.
“In other markets, teams are getting direct licenses,” Syring said. “If they’re getting licenses, they are getting paid off of those bets. The league also only allows you to take a percentage off the top.”
Syring said the Thunder believes allocating 0.25% is an equitable way to ensure a healthy gaming market and allow the Thunder to remain competitive.
Every state that borders Oklahoma, except for Texas, has legalized sports betting, including Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Missouri and Arkansas.
But Morgan said the Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association doesn’t believe any license can go through a non-tribal operator under terms of the State-Tribal Gaming Act.
“If we can find a way forward and work with the Oklahoma City Thunder, that’s what we want to keep in mind as we move forward,” Morgan said. “They’re a big part of the discussion and someone we want to ensure that we listen to their voice and their thoughts.”
Under the proposal outlined by Syring, the consortium or NBA team license would be geofenced to non-tribal territory in Oklahoma, and each tribal territory would be governed by any individual tribe and operator agreement where tribes could choose to operate a sports betting product within their territory.
But Morgan said lands eligible for sports betting under the Indian Gaming Regulation Act would be limited based on differing legal and treaty histories between tribes. Some tribes in Oklahoma have reservation statuses while others do not.
Under the Thunder’s model, exclusivity fees would be paid to the state under the existing compact structure, which grants the state a share of revenue generated by certain types of tribal gaming. The deal net Oklahoma more than $210 million last year, with most of the money going to education.
“At the end of the day, all Oklahomans will now have the ability to safely place bets on their phones or at retail locations anywhere in Oklahoma,” Syring said. “We would be thrilled to support the solutions moving forward.”
Oklahoma Lottery wants to sell products online
During the hearing, Jay Finks, executive director of the Oklahoma Lottery Commission, said participating in mobile sports betting doesn’t make sense for the commission, because it doesn’t fit the commission’s model on managing risk and maximizing revenue to the state.
But he said mobile sports betting could open the door for selling lottery tickets online.
“As we’re looking at this expansion into gaming and as we look at Oklahoma evolving that, don’t forget about us, because [with] the addition of sports betting, forgetting about the Oklahoma Lottery does have the opposite effect, and that could take away the revenue that we’re driving for Oklahoma education.”
