The Golden State Warriors had a Utah problem.
During the NBA playoffs last June, some Golden State players were worried about traveling to Utah for a playoff matchup because the city doesn’t have an extensive nightlife.
"There's no nightlife in Utah. Obviously, as players, you want to be able to have a little bit of a nightlife, but the main focus is winning games,” said Warriors forward Matt Barnes.
Kevin Durant, who went on to win his first NBA championship, said something similar.
"I'm sure it's probably clubs, but I've never been to one in Utah," Durant told ESPN. "It's a few restaurants close to the hotel, but you're not scattered out.”
But what does the data show? Compared to 150 of the U.S. largest cities, Utah’s capital ranks relatively high. In fact, Salt Lake City placed at No. 23 in WalletHub’s recent rankings of the country’s most fun cities.
Salt Lake City trailed only Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Honolulu within the top 20.
Las Vegas topped the list, leading Orlando, New York, Miami and Portland, Oregon, within the top five.
The least-fun cities included Oxnard, California; Brownsville, Texas; Fontana, California; Santa Rosa, California; and Ontario, California.
WalletHub’s rankings reviewed 58 metrics that ranked each city on entertainment and recreation, nightlife and parties, and costs.
Salt Lake City’s nightlife was ranked No. 41, the second-lowest within the top 30. The nightlife for Omaha, which was the No. 30 most fun city, had a ranking of No. 58.
But the city’s costs ranking was lower than a handful of the most fun cities, including Las Vegas, New York and Atlanta.
Shooting guard Klay Thompson, who also won a title with the Warriors earlier this summer, may have the best advice for those looking for fun in Utah.
"I always go by the saying, 'Only boring people get bored,'” he said.