OKLAHOMA CITY — At 4-foot-11, Kristin Chenoweth always wanted to play basketball. It never happened, but she still made it to the NBA Finals.
The award-winning actress, singer, Oklahoma native, Oklahoma Hall of Fame inductee and unabashed Thunder fan was the pick to perform ''The Star-Spangled Banner'' before Game 7 of the title series between the Thunder and the Indiana Pacers on Sunday night.
Chenoweth's performance will air live on ABC at 8 p.m. EDT, shortly before tipoff of the season's final game.
She has performed on some of the biggest stages in the world — but doing the anthem for a Thunder game gives her butterflies.
''Let me just say, if they had anxiety medication for Thunder fans, I'd be taking it," Chenoweth, dressed in a Thunder sweatshirt, told The Associated Press after her soundcheck at the arena on Sunday.
Chenoweth's Thunder fandom has been no secret since the franchise's early years, though she also has professed at times to liking the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks as well. That said, the Thunder are clearly her top choice — so much so that she once told the Tulsa World she spent three hours bedazzling a Thunder hat. She went to Oklahoma City University after growing up in Broken Arrow, about 115 miles northeast of where the Thunder play.
And her 8-year-old dog's name is Thunder. She even dressed the pup up once in a Thunder outfit.
''I never miss a game unless I'm on stage,'' Chenoweth said. ''I was a cheerleader in high school in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, and I loved football, but my favorite was basketball. I like how much of a team player you've got to be. ... And this is my team.''