On Sunday evening, the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the NBA Finals to claim the championship. Unlike last year, when Drew Peterson got a ring with the Boston Celtics, no USC players were on the title-winning team this season. However, two of head coach Eric Musselman’s former players did win: Jaylin Williams and Isaiah Joe.
Williams (not to be confused with Thunder teammate Jalen Williams) played one season for Musselman at Arkansas in 2021-2022. He was selected by Oklahoma City in the second round of the 2022 NBA Draft, and primarily serves as a bench player for the team, and played just 14 minutes during the Finals—the majority of which coming in a Game 6 blowout loss.
Joe played for Musselman with the Razorbacks from 2018-2020. A second round pick by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2020 NBA Draft, he joined the Thunder prior to the 2022-2023 season, and has spent the past three years with the team. A key bench player for Oklahoma City, Joe saw action in five of the seven NBA Finals games.
Musselman has now produced four NBA champions in the past four seasons, as Williams and Joe join Jordan Walsh with the Celtics last year and Moses Moody with the Golden State Warriors in 2022. Having had success developing players during his time at Arkansas, the head coach is looking to continue doing so with the Trojans.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Two former Eric Musselman players win NBA title with OKC Thunder