NBA: Rankings the Loudest Arenas in the NBA

One of the key factors in a basketball game is the fans.

Without them, arenas are only filled with the echoes of the ticked-off players and the whistles blown by the referees throughout the contests. In essence, games need loud fans to survive.

Time and time again, the fans create the atmosphere around them, and they create how each arena's volume is actually measured.

With all that in mind, here is a list of the 10 loudest arenas in the association.

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If only the celebrities—excuse me, fans—of the Staples Center were not as chill as they are, this arena would unquestionably deserve a top five mention.

The fact that all these people gather together for a great team and make only so much noise is a bit of a disappointment. But then again, it's Southern California, where almost no one is loud and obnoxious when sober.

When the New York Knicks are good, this arena will see not only dramatic games, but loud ones as well.

After all, the only reason Spike Lee is classified as the loudest Knickerbocker fan is because he's in the first row.

Aside from being some of the more knowledgeable fans in the association, the Boston Celtics fans are also very loud in their sacred TD Garden.

If they had a sign like that from more than a year ago, imagine what they'd be doing if 'Bron and the Heat were in town.

This postseason, American Airlines Arena of Miami may or may not have jumped a spot or two on this list.

They have passionate fans, something that makes up for a seemingly deafening facility of 19,600 LeBron, er, I mean Heat, faithful.

Even if they do have to let the public know to "Fan Up," they come out game after game and perform remarkably as a congregation, giving the AAA a spot on this list.

They've only been around for three seasons, but the Oklahoma City faithful have helped Oklahoma City Arena, formerly known as the Ford Center, find a spot in this list.

We were given just a taste of how loud the arena can be during this past postseason. The Thunder are so well built for the future, we are just going to have to get used to the loud noises from the usually sold-out crowd of 18,203 crazed fans chanting "OKC!" in unison.

It's hard putting an arena that would've occupied the first spot easily 15 years ago so low. But the fact of the matter is the United Center no longer qualifies as the best in the business.

Even though the team is on the rise, a top three spot is not in the books for the Bulls.

Still, it's a great facility, and anytime Benny the Bull comes out on a motorcycle or the club wins a game, it's nothing but electric inside the building.

2007 proved to be the defining moment for Oracle (formerly known as Oakland) Arena and its fans.

It was that postseason that the Golden State Warriors defeated the first-seeded Dallas Mavericks in the first round.

Players around the league have taken note of the loudness, and the 19,596-seat complex undoubtedly deserves a spot here.

The fans of Sacramento have gone through more than a weeping widow in the last year, but that doesn't mean they aren't passionate and loud.

After threatening the Kings' presence in Sacramento, the Maloofs decided to delay the move a season (or beyond.)

Still, it's hard to doubt these fans are insanely voluminous after they measured over 130 decibels during a November 2006 game versus the Pistons, setting a Guinness World Record in the process.

Another small market with big sounds, the Portland Trail Blazers' Rose Garden and its fans have made quite the amount of noise during their relationship.

We are going to get sick of them over the next decade because of their team's imminent success.

So be ready, basketball fans.

It's hard to doubt that the Utah Jazz have the craziest and loudest fans in all of the NBA.

They are consistently awesome, and despite having a metropolitan population of just 1 million, they fill up the seats time and time again and scream their hearts out.

Utah's only professional team is one that can brag about its fanship. The Jazz faithful bring about an aura of loud and incredibly dedicated fans no matter who the opponent.

It would feel utterly sacrilegious to pick anything other than the house John Stockton and Karl Malone built.

Follow Joseph on Twitter @JosephFafinski.