Sacramento Kings fans are notorious for ringing cowbells during their team’s home games in the NBA Playoffs, find out the reason behind why they do it and the origin of the cowbell story
Just recently, the Kings brought a new feature in their practice facility this season in the form of a bell.
Explained why do Sacramento Kings fans ring cowbell during home games in the NBA Playoffs and its origin
Bob Myers on the Kings fan ringing the cowbell in his ear 😅
"You're allowed to bring cowbells in. That’s what sports is. He’s rooting for his team. Fine. … It’s gonna be worse tonight."
(via @SteinyGuru957) pic.twitter.com/bV0c9IYGUM
— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) April 26, 2023
Sacramento Kings coach Mike Brown, is my newest @FOX40 co-worker. Here's his reporting debut to tell the story behind the new bell in the practice facility. He went to the source: Associate Head Coach Jay Triano. 🤣🤣
Maybe Mike will let me sit in as an assistant coach now? pic.twitter.com/TXQYDE9WKE— Sean Cunningham (@SeanCunningham) October 11, 2022
The practice bell has two uses, the first being to “reward players and bring recognition to guys that do good things for the team”. This involves drawing a charge, contesting a shot or collapsing the defense in practice. The second is a nod to Sacramento’s history with bells, particularly cowbells.
Reason behind the Kings fans ringing cowbells
Interestingly, the Sacramento Kings fans have been ringing cowbells at home games for over two decades now. The tradition began when former Lakers head coach Phil Jackson called Sacramento a “cow town”. He also called the Kings fans as “semi-civilized.”
As such, Kings fans decided to give a fitting response by bringing cowbells to home games. Things quickly escalated and soon thousands of fans began ringing cowbells at games which proved very loud and distracting.
The Kings have always had some of the best fans in the NBA and they have continued their cowbells tradition, even after moving to a new arena. “Any noise-making devices” is featured on the list of prohibited items inside the Golden 1 Center. However, cowbells are excluded for Kings games only.
In fact, there was even a 3-foot-tall cowbell installed in the corridor between Sacramento’s locker room and the Golden 1 Center court. Players got the chance to ring this bell ahead of their inaugural season at Golden 1 Center.
That same season, the team gifted a mini cowbell to season ticket holders. Kings fans also created a new tradition in the 2022-23 season, which involves lighting a beam into the sky after wins. However, the cowbells remain the most popular tradition till date and will continue to remain so.