The first Vietnamese player in the NBA Finals! Jaylin Williams identity and growth path

As the first Vietnamese player in league history, Williams is widely popular among Asian fans.

Late on Sunday night, after his son's team won the NBA Finals' first game, smiling Linda Williams sat in the family area with custom earrings on his ears with photos of Oklahoma City Thunder center Jaylin Williams. A fan walked forward, hoping to take a photo with her.

"My wife is Asian, she is your son and your super fan. Do you mind if I took a picture to her?" asked the fan after the Thunder defeated the Indiana Pacers 123-107 in this year's NBA Finals G2.

"Of course I don't mind," Linda Williams replied.

Jerin Williams has become quite popular among Asian NBA fans since being selected by the Thunder in 2022 and becoming the first player with Vietnamese descent in league history. Linda Williams said the NBA had confirmed the accuracy of her Vietnamese descent before the Thunder picked her son in the second round in 2022. She was born in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (formerly known as Saigon), with a Vietnamese mother and a white American Air Force pilot. After the Vietnam War ended in 1975, Williams, two siblings and his mother moved to the United States from Vietnam.

"I came to the United States in 1975 and was only 4 years old," Linda Williams said. "At the age of 6, I became a naturalized American citizen. I spent almost my whole life here." Today, under the gaze of the world, Jerin Williams, who is 6-foot-9 inches (about 206 cm) and weighs 240 pounds (about 108.9 kg), has made history and become the first Vietnamese player to make the finals stage. Well-known social media platforms such as "Asian News", "Rebellious Yellows", "Shark Express" and "12 a.m." all mention this historical moment.

"I was surprised that there was no such player before him, and I was extremely proud of him being the first person," Linda Williams said. "I laughed when I heard that he was the first in history. He was shocked, and I was shocked. It was amazing."

22-year-old Jerryn Williams said in an interview with Andscape: "I know this, and it's also very Respect this. I want to learn more about it and hope to go to Vietnam one day. I won't say that I have a very deep connection with Vietnamese culture, but I do desire to get a deeper understanding of myself on that side…”

"I have a lot of support. I'm very grateful for that."

Linda Williams said that her mother never taught her Vietnamese, but she could understand. She and her mother have never returned since leaving Vietnam in 1975. They all live near Fayetteville, Arkansas, close to the University of Arkansas where her son shines when he was in college. Jaylin himself has never set foot in Vietnam, and both mother and son expressed their hope to travel there as soon as possible.

"I kept saying I'm going back," Linda Williams said. "My mother lives with me now and she's always wanted to go back, but she hasn't since 1975. She's now dementia, and taking her back will be a challenge. My husband and I have considered going back, but I'm a high school teacher now, so it's hard to take time. I talked to my brother about going in December, but there's no specific plan yet. But I really want to go, I don't know when Jerin will go, he's really busy."

Jerin Williams said: "My grandma is a petite Vietnamese lady with her English almost incomprehensible. My mom knows a little Vietnamese. We often eat Vietnamese and eat a lot of pho. I always want to learn some Vietnamese, of course, never have time to learn. I hope to go to Vietnam one day, which is one thing on my life list."

Due to historical reasons, thousands of Vietnamese refugees eventually settled in Oklahoma City. According to a 2023 report by the Oklahomans on the Vietnamese Asian community, about 30,000 Oklahomans are of Vietnamese descent.

Linda Williams said it was not uncommon for Vietnamese and Asian fans to watch the Thunder in Jerin Williams' jersey and approach her and her son for photos and autographs.

"The Vietnamese community here is very enthusiastic," Linda Williams said. "They treat me as family here. Season ticket holder Long Tran called me 'cousin' when he met me. You see a lot of Vietnamese fans wearing Jerin's jerseys, they contacted him on Instagram and took photos with me here. It's really fun to be with the fans here."

{2 He said he grew up with the black community, but his racial heritage that blended African-American, Vietnamese and white ancestry to form “I’m for me.”

Jerling's parents said the NBA third-year player did not face significant racial problems during his childhood in Arkansas. Jarin said that growing up with a multi-ethnic background is a "super cool" experience. Although he has faced some racial jokes and problems, none of them lasted for a long time. He said that when he was a child, he might have encountered problems because of his height and size rather than his multiracial identity.

"I believe everyone is kind," said Linda Williams, who is 5-foot-9 inches (about 175 cm) tall and has played high school basketball. "Jerling is an outlier, he is tall.. If you look at his elementary school photos, he is always the tallest and youngest in the group. When he played baseball in the Church League, I always carried his birth certificate because some teams didn’t believe he was so young but so tall. ”

"I kept making sure he knew who he was and was a happy child. I don't emphasize whether he is white, black or Asian, but tell him to be a good kid and a good person. Accept yourself and know that you may be different, but this difference is special. It's not difficult because our family is diverse and he can easily adapt. ”

Jerling Williams' father Michael said in an interview with Andscape: "Jerling has never been teased, the carefree child you see, he always gets along well with everyone. ”

Jerling-Williams also offers some wisdom to mixed-race kids who struggle with identity or face problems like him.

"If someone makes fun of you for something, it's because they want to be you," Williams said, "this is how I think about it, especially now when people say negative things to me or make fun of me. I think they would rather be in my position. So, just ignore the noise and do what you should do and everything will be fine. ”

In the 47 games played for the Thunder in the regular season, Williams averaged 5.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. After considerable playing time in the first two rounds of the playoffs, he played very little in the Western Conference and NBA Finals. In his first game of the NBA Finals, Williams did not play and scored 3 points in the last two minutes of the second game.

Williams and the Thunder will be on the way in the week Three played the third NBA Finals game in Indianapolis. This will be the first NBA Finals game since 2000. With the close attention of Vietnamese fans around the world, Williams said he will prepare for any role by maintaining the routine of shooting, treatment and focusing on game planning.

"Mindity is the next game," Williams said, "Now draws 1-1, the team that won four games first wins. ”

Linda Williams grew up in Hammond, Indiana, but she has supported the Chicago Bulls since she was a child. Now she is a devout Thunder fan, proud of her son’s everything he does as an NBA player and what he represents.

"I love her, that's my mom," said Jaylin Williams, "she will always support me. ”