Jalen Williams stood on the podium at Paycom Center, still processing the gravity of the moment after helping deliver Oklahoma City its first NBA championship since 1979.
“Nope. No, not at all,” Williams said when asked if the reality had set in. “I actually just had my first drink… I think in a couple days I’ll be able to come back down to earth a little bit, but right now I’m just trying to enjoy the moment.”
The Thunder forward scored 20 points in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals, capping a breakthrough postseason run with a decisive 103-91 win over the Indiana Pacers. Yet even as confetti fell and cameras flashed, Williams admitted he was still overwhelmed by the moment.
“God’s been extremely good to me,” he said. “Just a lot of trials and tribulations throughout my career, a lot of things that I don’t speak on. He’s been very good to me, so that was the one thing I reflected on.”
Williams, who was drafted 12th overall in 2022, became a key two-way contributor for the top-seeded Thunder. On Sunday, he was part of a defensive surge that forced 21 Indiana turnovers—seven of them in the pivotal third quarter.
“First, I want to say I hope Tyrese is okay,” he said, referencing Haliburton’s early exit with a calf injury. “Going into halftime, a lot of it was not letting up because he’s not playing. And then two, just don’t panic… I thought our defense was actually pretty good the first half too.”
The 24-year-old shared a long embrace with head coach Mark Daigneault after the final buzzer and spoke candidly about what that moment meant to him.
“To be able to push through and come from not being known in college to three, four years later being an NBA champion… that was a rush of emotion,” Williams said. “Then I messed up and looked up and my mom was crying… that made me start tearing up a little bit.”
Holding the championship trophy for the first time brought another wave of emotion.
“It’s heavy. Heavier than expected, honestly,” he joked. “It still doesn’t feel real… Everything in the last minute and a half of the game didn’t feel like I was there anymore.”
Williams also credited his faith, family, and support system for helping him through the journey.
“I’m very fortunate to have the support group that I have,” he said. “And then I’ve talked about me writing too. I think that’s really helped—just being able to write my thoughts and clear my mind has been big.”
Reflecting on the journey from overlooked prospect to NBA champion, Williams said the title meant more because of who he shared it with.
“It’s great to be able to win it with idiots like Hart,” he said, referring to teammate Isaiah Hartenstein. “To maintain that through three years and to win with them is something I couldn’t have dreamed of.”
