FAYETTEVILLE — Former Arkansas men's basketball standouts Isaiah Joe and Jaylin Williams became NBA Finals champions with the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday.
Former Razorbacks coach Eric Musselman, who coached both Joe and Williams in Fayetteville, was in attendance for Game 7 in Oklahoma City, as was current coach John Calipari.
The Thunder defeated the Indiana Pacers 103-91 to clinch their first title in franchise history. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who played for Calipari at Kentucky, won the series MVP award.
Neither played in Game 7, but Joe played in five games and Williams played in three in the championship series. Joe and Williams averaged 4.8 and 3.3 points, respectively, in their appearances.
Over the course of the season, Joe averaged 10.8 points and 2.6 rebounds. Williams averaged 5.9 points and 5.6 rebounds.
The two were teammates at Fort Smith Northside High School for the 2017-18 season, but their college careers never overlapped at Arkansas.
Joe averaged 15.2 points and 3.4 rebounds with the Razorbacks from 2018-20, and Williams averaged 7.9 points and 7.7 rebounds from 2020-2022.