NEED TO KNOW
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Jalen Williams is playing in his first NBA Finals with the Oklahoma City Thunder on June 5
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His mom, Nicole, recalls the Thunder star’s early days playing basketball on an Air Force base with her and his brother Cody
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Nicole tells PEOPLE why she temporarily moved to Utah with her youngest son after he was drafted by the Jazz
Over the 12 years that Nicole Williams was active in the United States Air Force, her best memories included playing basketball on the base with her husband Ron and sons Jalen and Cody.
“We’d go to Luke Air Force Base in Arizona with the boys, and we’d play on their courts and make a weekend day out of it,” Nicole recalls in an interview with PEOPLE. “Basketball is pretty big on base, pickup games are a big deal.”
After a day on the basketball court, the Williams family would go bowling or go the commissary, says Nicole, describing her sons as both “very competitive” people. Now, Cody, 20, plays for the Utah Jazz and Jalen, 24, is set to compete in his first NBA Finals with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
“Growing up, Jalen was really that older brother,” Nicole recalls. “He took that role to heart, and you can see it now, if you ever watch him. He’ll tell you in any interview or if you ever just see him and ask him, one of his big goals was to be the best example he could be for Cody on and off the court. How to handle the positives and the negatives, how to handle the back noise, how to handle the highs, how to handle the lows. A big part of Jalen is making sure Cody sees how he handles those things.”
Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE/Getty
Cody and Jalen Williams trade jerseys
Nicole’s husband Ron was active military for 24 years and is recently retired, but the proud parents of two NBA players still have a lot on their plate supporting their sons’ dreams — especially when it comes to their individual needs. “They had two different paths to get to the NBA and they were both hard,” she recalls.
Cody was drafted tenth overall by the Jazz in 2024 two years after his brother was selected by the Thunder. “A lot of people would say, ‘Oh, your brother made it. Does that put pressure on you?,’ ” she recalls. But their family was “prepared” for that narrative, says Nicole.
“He was prepared for that. We prepared him for that, for the longest time, for years, we prepared him for that,” she tells PEOPLE. “So he’s been handling it like a pro.”
“And Cody’s interviews are wonderful, and even when he talks to us, he’s like, ‘No, I’m my own person. Jalen is a phenomenal example, and that’s what’s helping me. I also know I’m my own person, but I do look up to him for advice, but I’m okay.’ “
Mike Lawrence/NBAE/Getty
Cody and Jalen Williams on June 24, 2024 in New York City.
Nicole, now a family nurse practitioner, moved to Utah temporarily with Cody when he was drafted.
With two sons in different cities, Nicole’s dedication reminiscent of Donna Kelce’s method of attending both of her sons’ NFL games before Jason Kelce retired. Nicole even has her own split-jersey à la Donna with both the Jazz and Thunder represented.
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“Ron was still working at the time,” she says of Cody’s rookie season. “So, about every couple of weeks he would come down to Utah and stay for two or three days so that he could see Cody, hang out with all of us, and it worked out really good this past season because a lot of the times when Cody was at home, Jalen was away.”
When Nicole watches her sons play, she’s not looking for how quickly they can cross over an opponent or defend the rim. Instead, she’s looking at her boys express themselves through the sport they love, and she advises other moms of basketball stars do the same.
Jimmy Doo/ Thunder.com
Nicole Williams
“You’re going to blink and the next thing you know they’re older, doing whatever they’re doing, whether it’s basketball or not. Just stay in the moment and enjoy the moment, because there’s a lot of things that are missed,” says Nicole.
“When we watch games, those moments for me, yes, Ron and I are very competitive, but those moments for me are me saying, ‘Oh my gosh, Jalen, the way your lip curled every time you shoot.’ Or, ‘Oh my gosh, Cody, the way you look and your little cheek does that little dimple.’ Those are literally my moments that I’m in.”
Jalen and the Oklahoma City Thunder take on the Indiana Pacers in the Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday, June 5.
Read the original article on People
