MILWAUKEE — Bango the Buck scored big after ranking No. 6 among basketball fans for the best NBA mascots!
In November 2022, NJ.Bet surveyed over 900 NBA fans nationwide to see which hype creatures on the court ranked the best and the worst. Out of the 28 active mascots, Grizz with the Memphis Grizzlies took the top spot, followed by Benny the Bull (Chicago Bulls), Moondog (Cleveland Cavaliers), Harry the Hawk (Atlanta Hawks), and Rocky the Mountain Lion (Denver Nuggets).
As for the worst? Mavs Man with the Dallas Mavericks fell to the bottom of the list, even after a recent rebrand in 2022. Jazz Bear with the Utah Jazz ranked No. 27, and Lucky the Leprechaun with the Boston Celtics ranked No. 26.
Each mascot could achieve a possible score out of five, and Bango scored 3.51. According to the NBA, Bango has been performing acrobatic dunks and stunts for the Milwaukee Bucks since 1977. Cartoon Network voted Bango as its first "Most Awesome Mascot." He makes over 250 appearances in the Milwaukee community every year.
According to NJ.Bet, 63% of respondents believe every NBA team should have a mascot. Four teams currently do not have one. The survey also found 59% of NBA fans like mascots, 64% of NBA fans like their team's mascot, and 77% feel like mascots add to the experience of the game.
Below is the full ranking, according to NJ.Bet:
- Grizz (Memphis Grizzlies)
- Benny the Bull (Chicago Bulls)
- Moondog (Cleveland Cavaliers)
- Harry the Hawk (Atlanta Hawks)
- Rocky the Mountain Lion (Denver Nuggets)
- Bang (Milwaukee Bucks)
- Rumble the Bison (Oklahoma City Thunder)
- Crunch the Wolf (Minnesota Timberwolves)
- Champ (Dallas Mavericks)
- Boomer (Indiana Pacers)
- Clutch the Bear (Houston Rockets)
- Hooper (Detroit Pistons)
- Pierre the Pelican (New Orleans Pelicans)
- Sir CC (Cleveland Cavaliers)
- Stuff the Magic Dragon (Orlando Magic)
- Franklin the Dog (Philadelphia 76ers)
- Hugo the Hornet (Charlotte Hornets)
- Chuck the Condor (Los Angeles Clippers)
- Slamson the Lion (Sacramento Kings)
- G-wiz (Washington Wizards)
- Burnie (Miami Heat)
- The Coyote (San Antonio Spurs)
- Go the Gorilla (Phoenix Suns)
- The Raptor (Toronto Raptors)
- Blaze the Trail Cat (Portland Trail Blazers)
- Lucky the Leprechaun (Boston Celtics)
- Jazz Bear (Utah Jazz)
- Mavs Man (Dallas Mavericks)
