Stephen Curry, leader of NBA champions Golden State Warriors, ran through the street Thursday in Oakland, California, cigar clenched between his teeth during the team's victory parade.
In one hand he clutched the trophy awarded after the Warriors put away the rival Cleveland Cavaliers in game five of the NBA Finals, and with the other slapping high-fives with fans lining streets littered by a blizzard of blue and gold confetti.
Local media reported hundreds-of-thousands of people thronged the gritty East Bay streets for the parade and rally to celebrate the team's second title in three years.
From atop a double-decker bus, Warriors guard Klay Thompson sprayed champagne out of a large bottle toward fans.
Above, a sky-writing plane scrawled "Debate This" in the air above downtown Oakland, part of forward Kevin Durant's Nike marketing campaign, in response to critics of his decision to leave Oklahoma City a year ago for Golden State.
Durant was rewarded with his first career championship, and was named finals MVP for a series in which he averaged 35 points a game.
The Warriors and Cavs have collided in the finals for an unprecedented three years in a row.
After beating Cleveland in 2015, Golden State took a 3-1 lead last year only to fall victim to the LeBron James-led Cavaliers' record-setting three-game comeback.
Signing Durant as a free agent immediately made the Warriors heavy favourites throughout the 2016-17 season.
The Warriors dominated in the Western Conference and were on the brink of an unprecedented 16-game undefeated sweep through the playoffs, before dropping game four to the Cavaliers.
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