Food & Drink
Snacks & Drinks for Wrapping Up Basketball Season
Discover fun, delicious snacks and drinks to enjoy while watching basketball season playoffs and finals
October 2, 2020
The playoffs have been a whirlwind and now it’s time to settle in to watch the finals as the pro basketball season wraps up. Obviously, you’re going to need some snacks and drinks to make it a championship experience, whether you’re watching solo or with a small group of friends.
We’ve got a list of the best foods to eat while watching your favorite basketball team battle for the coveted Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy. Whether you’re rooting for Los Angeles or Miami, or your team was knocked out long ago, these snacks and drinks are a slam dunk for a great time watching the game.
1. Buffalo Chicken Wings
A member of the Sports Food Hall of Fame (yes, we just made that up, but it sounds legit, doesn’t it?), wings are our number one draft pick for the team of essential game day snacks. They’re so freaking good and endlessly snackable. And let’s talk about versatility for a minute: maybe boneless wings, tenders, popcorn chicken or chicken nuggets (wings’ tasty cousin) are your game. We’ve got those, too! Prefer naked chicken and your own favorite sauce? Oh, we have the sauce…
2. Snack Mix
Having a good snack mix on hand is like having a deep bench. It will keep you going strong late into the game when the starting snacks are exhausted. And in that case, just order more! Download the Gopuff app and order from your mobile device. Your options are vast:
Try Chex Mix Bold Party Mix, Cheddar, Original Chex Mix and the sweet side of Chex Mix with Cookies ‘n Cream or Peanut Butter Muddy Buddies.
Planters Nuts & Chocolate or Peanut Butter Chocolate Trail Mix
3. Nachos Supreme
Prep time: 15 minutes
Total time: 50 minutes
Source: delish
Nachos are another universal game day food because of their versatility. Regardless of which sport you’re watching (the pro basketball season finals, in this case), a mountain of loaded nachos is sure to be a hit. Check out the video above, then get the recipe here (and alter it to your liking) and get your ingredients below.
Shop This Recipe:
Ground beef (or ground chicken or turkey)
Garlic
Onion
Black beans
Monterey Jack cheese
Pickled jalapenos
4. Popcorn
Right next to snack mixes, popcorn comes off the bench to make noble contributions to the team effort. Popcorn’s versatility makes this snack a great utility player that can fill many roles. Whether it’s sweet and salty kettle corn, buttered movie popcorn, white cheddar or Flamin’ Hot Cheetos popcorn, we say “leave it all on the court.” Keep this key player around.
5. Pigs in a Blanket (a.k.a. Bagel Dogs)
Pigs in a blanket are another fine addition to your game day snack menu. You can see these delightful words right on the package: mini beef hot dogs wrapped in bagel dough. If you can get past the mouth-watering picture of the bagel dogs in question, of course.
6. Pizza!!!
Watching the finals without pizza is like playing for a professional basketball season without any fans in the stands. Wait a minute…
Good news, though! We have tons of pizza!
DiGiorno Traditional Crust with Pepperoni, Four Cheese, Rising Crust with Pepperoni or Supreme
Freschetta Brick Oven 5 Cheese Italian Pizza or Supreme on a Naturally Rising Crust
Red Baron Classic Crust Pepperoni Pizza or Personal Deep Dish Pizza
Vegetarian and gluten-free options like Amy’s Vegan Margherita Pizza and Caulipower Margherita or Veggie Pizza on cauliflower crust
If you dig your gamer food and pizza smaller, try more bite-size options like Totino’s Pizza Rolls or Pepperoni Bagel Bites Pizza Snacks.
7. Mozzarella Cheese Sticks
You can really feel the stretch with these mozzarella sticks. That’s when you know they’re good. Get some marinara sauce and ranch dip and do some dunking of your own.
8. Chips and Dip
Step 1: Get the best chips—tortilla and potato
Tortilla Chips
Tostitos Scoops
Simply Organic Tostitos Blue Corn Tortilla Chips
Fritos Scoops
Nacho Cheese Doritos
Try the Fritos Scoops and Salsa Con Queso dip combo! Or maybe you’re looking for Fritos of another flavor.
And since you’re in the Dorito aisle…
Potato Chips
While we love a simple, elegant chip, sometimes you just need more flavor. We’re here to help!
Nashville Hot Chicken
Kettle Backyard Barbeque, Jalapeno, Krinkle Cut Salt & Fresh Ground Black Pepper, Honey Dijon and Sea Salt
Ruffles Original, Flamin’ Hot, Jalapeno Ranch or Lime & Jalapeno
Pringles Original, Sour Cream & Onion, BBQ, Pizza, Cheddar Cheese, Ranch and Jalapeno
Utz Crab Potato Chip and Red Hot Potato Chips
Rap Snacks Cardi B Cheddar Bar-B-Que Chips, Migos Sour Cream & Ranch, and Migos Bar-B-Quin’ with My Honey with Ranch
Pop Chips Cheddar & Sour Cream, Barbeque, Sour Cream & Onion and Sea Salt & Vinegar
Zapp’s VooDoo Potato Chips, VooDoo Heat, Evil Eye Kettle Chips and Cajun Dill Gator-tators
Step 2: When I dip, you dip, we dip
French onion dip
Queso dip
Tostitos Queso Blanco
Salsa Con Queso Dip
Tostitos Creamy Spinach Dip
Ranch dip
Salsa!
9. Auntie Anne’s Pretzel Dogs
Hot dogs. Classic. Hot dogs wrapped in a scrumptious pretzel bun?? Oh, it’s on now! Get some mustard (yellow or spicy brown) or cheese sauce and eat like nobody’s watching. Because everyone’s watching the game. It’s a fantastic arrangement, really.
10. White Castle Cheeseburger Sliders
Let’s be honest, who hasn’t gotten a bag of burgers from White Castle and made them disappear? Experience that joy while watching the game.
11. Flamin’ Hot Cheetos vs. Takis
Flamin’ Hot Cheetos
vs.
Takis
Yes, Takis vs. Flamin’ Hot Cheetos is a heated rivalry and it’s up to you to determine a winner. Bring your expert opinion to the table and taste them both. Rinse (preferably with a satisfying Coca-Cola or, if you’re of legal age to drink alcohol, a beer) and repeat. As many times as necessary to reach a decision in good taste. Thank you for your contribution.
12. Chicken Taquitos
When freshly heated, these taquitos will go faster than all remaining timeouts in the final minute of the game. Better get a few boxes. Just to be sure.
Sodas and Seltzers and Beers, Oh My!
For the love of LeBron, don’t forget the drinks!
Get your favorite sports drinks and sodas (Mountain Dew pairs well with, um, everything).
Seltzers and spiked drinks are kind of a big deal now. Truly, they are! And they are here to refresh your palate.
It’s been a challenging year, without question. But one really great thing is that when you order with Gopuff, beer can(s) literally show up wherever you are. Craft beer brings the flavor. Domestic beers and imports taste clean, go down easy and get the job done.
Download the Gopuff app from the Apple Store or Google Play and make it even easier to order the food and drinks you need to make your game day experience a winner.