The Thunder's victory is for every Oklahoman who's been underestimated | Opinion

I live in Colorado currently.Its beautiful.

There are mountains.

The air is thin.

The lattes and homes are wildly overpriced for a reason.And I cant tell you how many times someone has smirked at me after I say Im from Oklahoma.You dont seem like youre from Oklahoma, they remark.Youre actually...smart!Did you marry your cousin?Do you even HAVE a Trader Joes?If I had a dollar for every time someone implied I was a backwoods idiot because I grew up in a state chock full of tornado drills and cattle crossings, I couldve bought courtside Finals tickets and still had money left over to fix the roads.

(Okay...actually, lets be real.

Not enough to fix the roads.)So when the OKC Thunder won the NBA Finals last night, it wasnt a win only for the players.

It was a beautiful, cathartic, deeply Okie-style moment of:We may not be your coastal elite darlings, but were here, were loud, and we just beat every team out there.Perhaps thats why last night, when Shai Gilgeous-Alexander cradled that hard-fought trophy, I wiped tears off my face and hoped my Colorado friends didnt notice.

I felt so ridiculous.

These players dont even know I exist.

This wasnt my win.But maybe it was, just a little?This championship was for the underdogsThe Thunder built their superstars.

Brick by brick.

Pick by pick (looking at you, Sam Presti), from a small market with a big heart and a budget that wouldnt cover half of LAs Botox.And we fans have shown up in our boots and ball caps, not Balenciaga.

We embody blue collar basketball.

This wasnt Hollywood, this was the heartland.

Along with all overlooked states between coasts (shout out to Indiana!), Oklahoma is the punchline until were the headline.

And now?Now, the national media is scrambling to pronounce Hartenstein correctly and wondering how a ragtag bunch of 20-somethings from a flyover state just took the Finals in six.We Okies have been called hicks, yokels, backwards Bible-thumpers, and uneducated nobodies.

But what we are, always, is loyal.

To our teams, to our people, to the land that raised us.And when one of ours rises, we tend to rise with them.This ones for every Okie whos ever been laughed atTo the ones who had to explain that we do have universities, and some of them are pretty dang good.To the ones who moved away and got tired of being someones youre not like the rest of them compliment.To the ones who speak with a drawl and still know more than the guy making fun of them.To the ones who grew up watching Durant leave, Russ get traded, and still vowed, Next year, well be back.Well, were back.I can speak for many Thunder fans when I say this isnt just a championship, its a cultural touchstone.

Its a moment in which much of the country is forced to stop pretending were invisible.More: Thunder-Pacers series a happy reminder that grass isn't always greener elsewhere | OpinionThis win is so much bigger than basketball.

Its about what happens when a place full of grit and generosity decides its done being overlooked.Its about small towns watching the big city win year after year, and daring to hope that maybe just maybe the world is finally seeing what weve known all along:Oklahoma is full of magic.

Teeming with heart.

Hospitality.

Hustle.And now, Oklahoma is full of champions, too.We arent just flyover country anymore.

Were parade route territory.

And were just getting started.Laura Albritton is a writer now living in Colorado who is originally from Oklahoma.This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: The Thunder's victory says something about all of us Okies | Opinion.

This article has been shared from the original article on yahoo, here is the link to the original article.