Thunder's Jaylin Williams historic finals run brings hope to OKC's Asian American community

Jaylin Williams made history as the first player of Vietnamese descent to make it to the NBA Finals. For the members of the Oklahoma Asian Basketball Association, seeing one of their own make it to the highest level means the world to them.

“Yao Ming, Jeremy Lin – all of them came, and we were proud to have an Asian represent us in the NBA,” explained Long Tran, who considers himself the “biggest Thunder fan there is.” “Now, with a Vietnamese playing in the NBA with the Thunder in the finals for the first time ever, we couldn’t be more proud of this guy.”

Long’s love for basketball made him one of the first members of the Oklahoma Asian Basketball Association (OABA), which has met on the hardwood every week for 18 years now.

“When we were growing up, there wasn’t a place for us to play,” said Long. “We just had a bunch of friends get together, and we went to find courts here and there.”

While he’s no longer an active member in OABA due to his knees “not holding up,” Long still stops by the league’s games from time to time. He sees how important the sport is for him and his community.

“My son’s name is Jordan, so I’ve always been an NBA fan,” said Long. “It’s grown so much in our group and our Asian community, and we just love the sport.”

The league has grown from having just eight teams to having up to 40 teams at one time. Co-founder Alex Chang knows how far OABA has come since he and Hiep Nguyen formed the league nearly two decades ago.

“One place that we used to play was Hefner Park, and they didn’t even have lights at night,” said Alex. “We would click on the lights from the [adjacent] tennis court to have light to play basketball.”

With every year and every season, OABA has forged a family for its members. It’s something long-time member Ronny Tran calls a blessing.

“They’re like my older brothers, and in turn, I have little brothers that came into the league afterwards,” said Ronny. “If this league wasn’t here, the Asian community wouldn’t be as cohesive as it is.”

Ball is their life, and it’s something Ronny and Alex both hope to pass on to their own children.

“Even our kids are playing together now, and they’re inspiring to be in the league as well,” said Alex.

While basketball has been an integral part of their lives, these players did not often see their communities represented in the big leagues.

“Sports-wise, Vietnamese? We’re the smallest, the shortest, the thinnest,” Long pointed out. “We’re not the strongest. We’re not the fastest, and so, there’s not a lot of representation in the elite level, right?”

“When I told [my dad] I was playing basketball and how much I loved it, he was like, ‘You see anybody that looks like you in the league? So, why are you going to put so much energy and effort towards it?’” added Ronny.

Ronny says seeing Jaylin play on the big stage is a representation that his son will get to see.

“It really means a lot,” said Ronny. “To say that to my son, like ‘If you really put in the work and really put in the dedication, there’s a chance.’ There’s always a chance.”

For Long, Jaylin’s historic accomplishments aren’t just about seeing his community succeed; it’s also a win for his family.

“His mom is my cousin, and so I’m his uncle!” exclaimed Long. “Ever since she’s been here, we’ve connected and we call each other ‘cuz’.”

As the Thunder look to clinch Oklahoma City’s first championship win, this community knows that seeing their hometown team make it this far is already leaving a lasting legacy.

“A lot of kids may aspire to maybe one day play in the NBA,” explained Alex. “I know not a lot of us may be that size being Asian, but they can see that as possible that somebody else made it, and maybe they could one day too.”

“Hopefully, one day, a Vietnamese kid growing up can see, ‘Hey, this kid made it. I can so too,’” added Long. “It gives our community hope.”

If you want to join OABA, you can message them on Facebook here.