The Oklahoma City Thunder took advantage of the rare gift of multiple Top 20 picks amid an open championship window, and they appeared to be one of the biggest Day 1 winners after taking Michigan center Aday Mara at No. 12 and trading to No. 16 for Iowa point guard Bennett Stirtz. Even on Day 2, Sam Presti's quality was in full force
The Thunder traded the No. 37 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, which was used on Louisville guard Ryan Conwell, to the Miami Heat in exchange for cash considerations and the No. 41 pick, which was used to select Kentucky guard Otega Oweh. The Thunder appear to have won this trade on multiple fronts.
Not only did the Thunder trade down to land the superior offensive player, but they managed to trade a Louisville Cardinal and get an improved Kentucky Wildcat at his expense. Oweh becoming a reliable bench player would be yet another developmental with for OKC, especially with the championship roster slowly flaking away.
Thunder add Otega Oweh in NBA Draft, trade Ryan Conwell to Heat
Conwell had some solid scoring and shooting numbers, but he certainly benefitted from the graviity that No. 6 pick Mikel Brown Jr. provided. Oweh needed to be a primary scorer on a Wildcats roster that was very disappointing, and he managed to put together enough quality games together to convince teams that he will translate his scoring to the pros.
Oweh, the younger brother of Washington Commanders pass rusher Odafe Oweh, averaged 18.6 points and 4.8 rebounds per game last year. Even though his 33% 3-point percentage on modest value isn't eye-popping, going to an Oklahoma City team that has consistently helped second-round picks develop into deadeye sharpshooters from beyond the arc could give him the boost he needs.
With Aaron Wiggins having been traded to the Atlanta Hawks, Cason Wallace preparing to test the free agent market, and Jared McCain showing some very inconsistent performances, OKC could have stood to add one more bench scorer next to Ajay Mitchell. Oweh is, if nothing else, going to put the ball in the basket. Call me crazy, but that skill seems exceedingly important in the NBA.
Oweh may end up as the second-round guard with the most translatable NBA skillset in the short-term, and the Thunder were able to get him while moving down in the order after Miami fell in love with Conwell's shooting.
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