What Is Oklahoma City Thunder Star Jaylin Williams’ Ethnicity?
Jaylin Williams was once just a small-town kid from Arkansas who had a big dream to play in the NBA. Well in 2022, that dream became a reality when he was selected by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round of the draft. That day, he also made history in a first for the professional basketball league.
Here’s more on that and the background of the rising OKC star nicknamed JWill.
Williams’ age and ethnicity
Williams was born on June 29, 2002, to parents Michael and Linda in Fort Smith, Arkansas, where the family lived for several years before moving to Springdale, Arkansas. Williams has three older brothers Mikey, Marquis, and Montell, and one sister named Synora Phillips.
Williams’ father is of African-American descent, and his mother is Vietnamese. She was born in Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) when the Vietnam War was going on. And in 1975, her mother, Nga, moved to the United States.
When Williams entered the NBA, he made history by becoming the first player drafted in the league of Vietnamese heritage.
Growing up in Arkansas, Williams didn’t have too much exposure to the Vietnamese culture and community. He would hear mother’s family speak the language and he loved the food they cooked. But when he got to college and traveled to play in NCAA tournament with the University of Arkansas Razorbacks, he began to see the support he had from people in different cities.
“The support I’ve gotten from the Vietnamese community has been the most from anybody,” Williams said per Sporting News. “When I was playing in San Francisco, there was a big Asian community there. Any time I was walking with my teammates, we were playing in the Sweet 16, I was getting recognized. After the draft, I was getting [direct messages from] a bunch of Vietnamese and Asian people. A lot of the famous Asian people were DM-ing me saying congrats. It was a really cool thing.
“It was honestly mind-blowing. At the time, I knew I had support, but that much support was crazy. I didn’t know that many people knew who I was and looked up to what I was doing, thought what I was doing was amazing.”
Williams’ mother shares why she’s so happy he was drafted by the Thunder
Since being in the league, Williams continues to get that support from the community and has become a role model for others.
“When I see people out, they always come up to me. If you see people in my jersey during the game, most of the time it’s Vietnamese people. It’s really awesome,” Williams told The Oklahoman.
At first, his mother didn’t realize the significance of her son being the first NBA player with Vietnamese heritage.
“It never dawned on us he would be,” Linda Williams said. “It’s so special to our family, to Jaylin … I’m still in awe of my son and what he’s capable of doing.”
She added that she’s also thrilled he ended up being drafted by Oklahoma saying: “It couldn’t have worked out better for us that he landed there. Jaylin wanted to be in a smaller market because he’s, at heart, a little country boy.”
