Jalen Williams reveals the origin story of the infamous Thunder Bark

Jalen Williams and the Oklahoma City Thunder have a unique tradition the likes of which the NBA has never experienced. After his debut, Thunder veteran Alex Caurso barked during his walk-off interview. Three weeks later, their center Isaiah Hartenstein barked during his postgame interview, surrounded by his new teammates.

Williams, or JDub as he is often called to differentiate himself from Oklahoma City backup center Jaylin Williams, is considered one of the founding fathers of the tradition along with J-Will. The two Williams were known to bark at the loyal fans at the Paycom Center, to which the fans responded in the same way dogs communicate. But how did it all start?

A reporter asked Jalen about the Thunder routine during NBA Cup media day in Las Vegas.

“I think it was my second year at the Summer League in Utah. Chet (Holmgren) barked. And it was kind of random. It wasn’t intentional and I think Twitter got a hold of it somehow,” Williams said. “And then, I don’t know, our team is so weird. I don’t even remember what happened after that, but we started barking after that. But Chet kind of accidentally started it.”

What started with Williams making fun of Holmgren became a Thunder tradition. Newcomers Caruso, Hartenstein and even first-round rookie Nikola Topic, who is out this season with a torn ACL, took part in the tradition this season. Williams says the barking of thunder symbolizes the team’s dog-like approach.

“One of the interviewers talked about a dog mentality or something and barked,” Williams added. “From there it just took off. J-Will and I started off by making fun of him. And once Oklahoma gets wind of something like that, they usually stick with it.”

Since then, Williams has embraced one of the many Thunder qualities that make her unique.

“I enjoy it. I think everyone else does too,” Williams said. “We don’t do this every time now, but it’s kind of our identity.”

Thunder are the favorites to win the NBA Cup in Las Vegas