Jalen Williams Shares 1-Word Reaction to Drinking Alcohol for 'First Time Ever' After Thunder's Game 7 Win

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Nick Meyer | Last updated Jun 23, 2025 8:13 PM ET

The Oklahoma City Thunder clinched their first ever NBA Championship on Sunday with a 103-91 win over the Indiana Pacers that included a 29-point performance from Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and a 20 point game from forward Jalen Williams.

Williams, who played collegiately at Santa Clara University, was quietly made the 12th pick in the 2022 NBA draft and has since blossomed into one of the best complementary forwards in the NBA.

On Monday, Williams joined ESPN Sportscenter's Monica McNutt to share a premonition he had earlier in the season about where OKC would end up, along with his raw reaction to drinking alcohol for the first time in celebration of a prophecy fulfilled.

Williams was asked by McNutt what he's done since winning the title.

"Everything that you can imagine when you win a championship. And I'll let everybody decide what that..." Williams added, trailing off at the end.

"Yesterday was my first time drinking ever like I had never had a drink up until that point," Williams continued, saying he told his teammates earlier in the year that he would drink if the Thunder won the championship.

"So we kept getting closer during the season and I was like, 'I'm going to have to drink," Williams continued.

"So, I drink a little bit, had a couple shots, champagne, beer, it was all disgusting," Williams added.

"I'm going to stick to Shirley Temples. I had a lot of those yesterday and a lot of water," the Thunder forward continued, calling Paycom Center the "loudest arena ever" during Game 7.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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