The goal for road teams in the NBA playoffs is to enjoy the quiet. In some arenas, it's hard to find

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — If there was an injury report for such things, the San Antonio Spurs would be listing the voice of coach Mitch Johnson as questionable these days. It's a bit scratchy right now, almost as if he's been gargling with gravel.

And it won't get better anytime soon. He's going to do a lot of screaming on Wednesday night in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals, win or lose. It's inevitable, provided that he wants his team to have a chance of hearing anything that he says.

It's not five-on-five when teams come to play at Paycom Center, the home of the Oklahoma City Thunder. It's like 18,005-on-five. It's loud in there. No, really. It's LOUD in there — with decibel levels routinely somewhere around 110, which is roughly the equivalent of a jackhammer. The T-shirts handed out for Game 1 read “Oklahoma City Loud," and no, it's not just a saying. It's who Thunder fans are.

“I would say anytime you play a team that is having or has had the level of recent success as the Thunder have, the fans follow," Johnson said. "There's people that get enthusiastic and bring energy to support. I would say that this would be probably one of the higher-end fan bases and arenas in terms of what the environment is like.”

Crowd noise is a major part of Thunder games. The fans know exactly what to do and when to do it, and in those moments they clearly aren't afraid to take a deep breath and make as much noise as humanly possible.

Starting lineups get announced? Noise. Thunder score? Noise. They even have signs to coax a certain volume from fans during some timeouts — the levels being loud, louder and loudest, and the difference is more than a little bit noticeable.

Obviously, the home team has to exist in that environment as well.

There was a moment in Game 1 on Monday night when Thunder coach Mark Daigneault had something to say to one of the referees, so he started shouting and got no response. He took a few steps down the sideline; again, no response. A few more steps; still nothing. Finally, one of the referees noticed him — but it took until Daigneault was two or three steps over midcourt, maybe a bit closer to the Spurs' bench than his own.

“It's the loudest basketball arena I've ever been in. ... I think it's just a testament to how much the community cares, how much this city cares about basketball and this team,” Thunder guard Alex Caruso said during last season's playoff run.

How loud does it get? “Deafening,” Caruso said.

Every NBA building is loud on some level, particularly when things are going well. The four left in these playoffs — Paycom in Oklahoma City, the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Rocket Arena in Cleveland and Madison Square Garden in New York — all can get quite raucous.

“Some of these arenas, the timeout and the music’s playing and you’re like, ‘I’m not even going to say anything until the music (is over).’ It’s crazy,'" Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said.

The Cavs had MSG quiet on Tuesday night, until they didn't. The Knicks rallied from 22 points down in the fourth quarter and won Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals in overtime. The Garden was not quiet in any way, as would be expected.

Paycom was quiet at the end Monday night, when the Spurs were finishing off their double-overtime victory in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals. That is the remedy: If visiting teams don't want to hear it, they simply have to win.

“It really puts emphasis on the players to echo calls and communicate with each other because there’s no way anyone on the sideline, let alone myself or whoever’s coaching, is going to be able to get all five guys’ attention at times," Johnson said of the challenge of coaching on the road in very loud places. "And with that being said, I hope there’s also a level of competitiveness and enjoyment of being in an environment like that.”

Spurs forward Julian Champagnie gave Thunder fans quite the compliment Tuesday when he described their volume level.

“I was trying to talk on defense,” Champagnie said, “and I couldn't hear myself.”

That's what made the quiet at the end even sweeter. The silence was proof of a job well done.

“That means you're doing something right," Champagnie said.

AP Basketball Writer Brian Mahoney and AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno in New York contributed.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

New York Knicks fans react during the second half of Game 1 in the Eastern Conference finals NBA basketball playoffs series against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Fans cheer before Game 1 in a third-round NBA basketball playoffs series between the San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder Monday, May 18, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Fans cheer during the second half of Game 1 in a third-round NBA basketball playoffs series between the San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder Monday, May 18, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

T-shirts are draped on fan seats before Game 1 in a third-round NBA basketball playoffs series between the San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder Monday, May 18, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer took time out from dealing with his own sticky political situation to congratulate his favorite soccer team, Arsenal, on winning the Premier League.

“22 long years for the Arsenal,” Starmer posted on X soon after the title was clinched late Tuesday. "But finally, we’re back where we belong.

“Champions!”

For Starmer, a lifelong Arsenal fan, the victory was rare good news at a time when he is clinging to power after woeful results for his Labour Party in local and regional elections on May 7.

Dozens of Labour lawmakers have called for him to resign, a member of his Cabinet has quit, and a popular rival, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, is running for a seat in Parliament so he can potentially challenge Starmer for the party leadership.

On this occasion, London got the better of Manchester, with Arsenal outlasting big rival Man City to win the biggest prize in English soccer for the first time since 2004.

The new champions and thousands of Arsenal fans celebrated into the night, with midfielder Eberechi Eze posting pictures on his Instagram account up to 5 a.m. local time.

One showed Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard leaning his head back with an Arsenal-branded bottle in his mouth, likely a nod to those critics who accused the team of being “bottlers” — a British term for collapsing under pressure — after three straight runner-up finishes in the Premier League and no major trophy since 2020.

Odegaard will be lifting the Premier League trophy after the away match against Crystal Palace on Sunday, the final day of the league season. Arsenal's players will parade the trophy in north London on May 31 — the day after competing in the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain, making it a possible double celebration.

There was footage on social media of many Arsenal players, including Eze, Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka and Jurrien Timber, walking around the club's Emirates Stadium home as the sun came up early Wednesday.

Members of the squad had earlier gathered at the club's training ground to watch the Bournemouth-City match. When it was confirmed Arsenal was the new champion, Saka and Timber headed to a blacked-out Premier League trophy that Arteta had installed at the training base and which would light up only when the Gunners won the title.

“Light that up,” Saka said in a video posted by Timber on Instagram. “Let me tell you something — 22 years, 22 years. There was laughing. There was joking. They aren't laughing anymore.

"Look, it's going to be shining, it's going to be shining bright.”

Former Arsenal players were soaking it all in, too.

Ian Wright was seen popping Champagne outside the Emirates surrounded by fans on Tuesday night.

Thierry Henry, a member of the club's last league title-winning team — the “Invincibles from 2004,” thanked the new generation.

“Finally," Henry wrote, ”now my kids saw us winning the league."

Associated Press writer Jill Lawless in London contributed to this story.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Arsenal supporters gather at the Arsenal stadium after Arsenal's soccer team won the Premier League title in London, Tuesday, May 19, 2026.(AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

Former Arsenal player Ian Wright arrives at the Arsenal stadium to celebrate with supporters after Arsenal's soccer team won the Premier League title in London, Tuesday, May 19, 2026.(AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

Arsenal supporters celebrate in a pub near the Arsenal stadium after Arsenal's soccer team won the Premier League title in London, Tuesday, May 19, 2026.(AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

Arsenal supporters gather to celebrate at the Arsenal stadium after Arsenal's soccer team won the Premier League title in London, Tuesday, May 19, 2026.(AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

Former Arsenal player Ian Wright celebrates with Arsenal supporters at the Arsenal stadium after Arsenal's soccer team won the Premier League title in London, Tuesday, May 19, 2026.(AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)