OKC Thunder: 3 Prospects Worth trading back into the first round for

The Pepperdine product offers the OKC Thunder at least 3-and-D talent, with the chance for more.

At 20 years old, out of Pepperdine, Maxwell Lewis has a wide range in the 2023 NBA Draft. While he has stans that believe he is a lottery talent, others view Lewis as a second-round steal. The truth is often in the middle.

Maxwell Lewis played in 31 games posting 17 points, five rebounds, two assists, and 1.6 STOCKS per outing for a nine-win Pepperdine squad. That was good enough to earn Lewis all-WCC honors to follow up on his All-Freshman season in 2021-22.

Lewis ranked in the 82nd percentile as a post-up scorer, a lowly 37 percent in isolation, but thrived on cuts (79th percentile). Lewis gains a lot of fans with his catch-and-shoot ability. In that category, he shoots 43 percent, including 55 percent when left alone on catch-and-shoot looks which offers gravity to the offense or a lethal drive-and-kick option. Both are things the OKC Thunder desperately need.

On the defensive end, Lewis ranks in the 64th percentile, 73rd percentile when defending the pick-and-roll, and a jaw-dropping 80th percentile when defending on an island in isolation (though a small sample size).

Lewis even offered help-side rim protection, limiting opponents to just 46 percent at the cup. His defensive versatility and shooting ability offer so much value for the Bricktown boys and worth grabbing in the back end of the first round.