George Kittle did not let the bandwagon accusation sit for long.
The San Francisco 49ers tight end was spotted supporting the Oklahoma City Thunder during their Western Conference finals matchup against the San Antonio Spurs, a courtside appearance that quickly made its way around social media. One fan on X suggested Kittle was only backing Oklahoma City because the Golden State Warriors were not still playing.
Kittle responded with one sentence.
“Graduated from Norman Oklahoma so you can chill bruh,” Kittle wrote on X on May 18.
That was the whole point. Kittle may be one of the most recognizable players on a Bay Area NFL team, but his connection to Oklahoma is not new. The 49ers’ official bio lists Kittle as a Norman High School alum, noting he earned all-state, all-district and all-conference honors as a senior before going on to play college football at Iowa.
George Kittle Has Real Oklahoma Roots
Kittle’s reply worked because it was direct and easy to verify.
He was not claiming a sudden Thunder connection because Oklahoma City is in the middle of another deep playoff run. Kittle spent part of his high school career in Norman, which sits roughly 20 miles south of Oklahoma City. MaxPreps lists him as a 2012 graduate of Norman High School, where he played football and basketball.
That makes the Thunder connection more local than random. Kittle’s NFL identity is tied to the 49ers, and his college football résumé is tied to Iowa, but Oklahoma is part of his story, too.
It also fits the way Kittle has long operated publicly. He is not a low-profile offseason star. Whether it is wrestling, college sports, basketball games or social media, Kittle tends to show up as himself — loud, visible and not especially worried about whether everyone approves.
That personality has been part of his value to the 49ers. Kittle is not just a productive tight end. He is one of the faces of the franchise, and San Francisco locked him into that role with a four-year extension through the 2029 season, according to the team’s announcement in April 2025.
Kittle’s Thunder Night Came During a Wild Playoff Opener
The timing also helped the clip travel.
Kittle was in the building for Game 1 of the Western Conference finals, and the game delivered enough drama to put plenty of extra attention on the crowd shots. The Spurs beat the Thunder 122-115 in double overtime at Paycom Center, with Victor Wembanyama posting 41 points and 24 rebounds in the opener.
For Thunder fans, the loss made the night frustrating. For everyone else watching the social media feed around the game, Kittle’s appearance became a small crossover moment between the NFL and NBA.
There is no major 49ers roster implication here, and it would be a mistake to turn it into one. Kittle attending a basketball game in May does not say anything about San Francisco’s offense, training camp, or the NFC West.
But it does show why Kittle remains one of the easier NFL stars to build quick offseason conversation around. He is recognizable enough that a camera shot at an NBA playoff game becomes a post. He is online enough to see the joke. And he is quick enough to answer it without dragging the exchange into anything bigger than it needed to be.
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