Otega Oweh Scouting Report
Experienced high-end defensive stoppers with enough offensive creativity summarizes the search from NBA scouts. Oweh fits the bill. But there's much more. Here are 3K+ words on his full NBA role:
Introduction
Oweh is one of the better defensive stoppers in college basketball. The junior guard developed into a starter at Oklahoma in the Big 12 before committing to Coach Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats in the summer of 2024. His game is best described as a versatile defender and slasher with secondary playmaking duties. He earned a reputation for his toughness and physicality.
The Newark, NJ-born combines his toughness with a great feel for the game, allowing him to stay in control and avoid foul trouble. Despite his development to a double-digit scorer, Oweh’s best NBA role is as a complementary guard to scorers around him. That’s the emphasis of this scouting report.
Physical Profile
At 6-foot-4, Oweh has a strong frame with broad shoulders. He’s worked hard to improve his body in the last few years, making it NBA-ready as of today. He’s listed at 215 pounds. He’s built to effectively stop guards and wings, adding versatility to his profile. Oweh has a laser-quick first step, while his well-filled chest helps him stay balanced once the matchup gets more physical. His wingspan is another eye-catcher. There is no official measurement available, but the reported number is 6-foot-10.
That also helps him to play as a help-side defender in the interior, especially considering his good vertical pop. His motor is consistent, making it possible to play long stretches of minutes, adding value to his NBA profile. As of today, he’s averaging 26 minutes per game at Kentucky. His footwork is improving, and he is best at the defensive side of the ball. As a decent screen navigator, Oweh’s physical tools make it possible for NBA teams to use him at the first or second line of defense.
Offense
Passing and playmaking
Oweh’s success in the NBA is most feasible when counting on his secondary playmaking. He’s an excellent ball-mover and quick decision-maker in motion-based offenses. His composure helps him to execute his passing reads with ease. He’s totaling 22 assists to 9 turnovers in 12 games, where these numbers add value to those mentioned above. In the first play below, we see an example.
The opponents ICE him out, but Oweh does well with the side pass, opening up his vision to see the roller and the entire strong side. He trusts his instincts with an extra dribble to draw the two defenders toward himself, leaving the play-finisher with the wide-open lane and dunk. In the second possession, Oweh throws in the smooth jab step after the catch, selling the defense he’s driving baseline on the weak side, whereafter he takes the switch and forces his opponent to rotate. That opened up the above-the-break shooter after late rotations, with another quick execution by Oweh.
The third play is nothing special but needs extra attention to the gravity Oweh has a downhill driver. When he’s catching the pass, defenders automatically try to run him away from the line and remove the threat of his slashing. That’s the value NBA teams look for in complementary guards. The fourth play shows the potential in Oweh’s development to more ball touches as a playmaker. He’s great at decelerating and using jab steps and pivots to mislead defenders and create passing angles. He caught two defenders while finding the backdoor cutter with the accurate high pass.
Catch-and-shoot
In today’s NBA, the necessity for guards to be average shooters at worst is vital for teams to maintain their offensive rating. After shooting 37.7% as a sophomore at Oklahoma, he’s averaging 36.1% so far at Kentucky while improving his attempts per game from two to three. That’s the value that adds a base to find consistent minutes in the NBA. The amount of extra spacing in the NBA is a lazy argument. It’s all about active cutting and properly locating to force rotations and get himself open looks. Oweh’s size allows him to play more on the wings, hence 16 of his 36 attempts being from the corner. I expect him to play a similar role in the NBA.
In the first two plays, we see Oweh at work on both corners. He’s good at checking out of a play to make himself the forgotten man. He doesn’t relocate just for the sake of moving, as he’s comfortable with a quick release once his feet are set. The shot itself is fluid but a tad too slow; in a faster-paced NBA game, that might cause him some issues with defenders closing out quicker compared to college. However, his great length compensates for it, as he shows a decent high release. His strength level is a good place, which could help him to experiment with higher catching points or even no-dip threes on high catches. This would solidify his chances to be a volume-shooter in the NBA.
Oweh has fluid hips, helping him in widening up before the catch on the third play below, showing a much more fluid release while he’s moving. However, the biggest area of development, and connected to his potential experiment with no-dip threes, is the bad habit of lowering the ball to power back up. That’s a sign that is often seen with guards with a below-average strength level. They need that elevation to add more power to their shot. But with Oweh, that’s not needed. Therefore, it’s in his best interest to change his shot process in the next few years and take a step toward playing as a volume shooter.
Catch-and-drives
Attacking closeouts is another way for Oweh to maintain his minutes. He’s a creative scorer, and with improving footwork that will add more value to his explosive first step. He keeps his head down in drives while not suffering from tunnel vision and actively looking to make the extra pass. The toughness of attacking defenders in the chest and getting them out of balance deserves credit. And at 16 dunks so far this season, that’s another example of the numbers confirming the grit and toughness Oweh plays with.
In the first play, he’s pivoting strongly before exploding to the rim. I like how he doesn’t always go for the weak side, knowing that he’ll collapse defenses regardless and that the strong-side drive could give him more options to drop the ball off to play-finishers. He created the finishing angle but elevated for the layup a step or two too early, leading to the miss. The second play shows how dangerous Oweh’s first step is, completely blown by his man without the need for a screen. The hesitation to hit the corner shooter or finish in traffic took too long and got him stripped. However, the flashes on both plays are promising, and that’s what NBA teams look for in the long run.
The third and fourth plays show how physically Oweh plays, and at times it leads to him following his instincts as a scorer and chasing the buckets himself. He’s good at drawing contact near the rim, increasing his attempts at the charity stripe to almost five per game, over 30% more than his sophomore year. His touch at the line also improved: 80.6%, where he shot below 70% in his first two years. Oweh’s weapon for NBA coaches is his ability to attack interior defenders and draw fouls. He’s useful to be a weapon when teams want to put opposing centers in foul trouble. That’s a win, even if the big man switches to the perimeter, leaving a mismatch possibility inside the arc with Oweh’s good connective passing to finding that. His rim pressure, toughness, and physicality are assets, and Oweh’s self-creation out of closeouts forms a good base to get these opportunities in the NBA.
Pick-and-roll
In the long run, Oweh will earn more on-ball reps that will put more weight onto his role as a creator out of the pick-and-roll. However, that still needs some work. What immediately stood out is that Oweh’s timing to use the ball screen while decelerating afterward is good. However, executing his reads isn’t consistent yet, as being an upperclassman puts more pressure on prospects to show how well they execute as they are more experienced.
The first two plays show an example of him seeing the elbow and above-the-break shooter after successfully diving to his defender’s chest and drawing help defense. He had to kick the ball out but finished his play instead. In the second play, Oweh settled for a far midrange jumper, bailing out of the defense as he got past the screen. With Oweh ‘s caliber of rim pressure and first step, he has to focus on getting two feet inside the paint and find the right angle to score or keep the ball moving and find open options outside.
The third play shows another area of development. Oweh felt forced to take the pull-up three while he could have kept the ball moving. That’s not a good decision with 18 seconds left on the clock. It’s not a red flag by any means, as Oweh tries to make the most out of his on-ball opportunities, which are scarce at Kentucky. However, it doesn’t take away from his need to embrace his role as the connective piece. Despite the misses in the fourth and fifth plays, Oweh shows he can get downhill with ease using ball screens, as the footwork needs to improve to maintain better balance before his finishes. That’s the part NBA coaches need to focus on with his developmental plan once he comes over to the association.
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Defense
Cuts
Team defense is vital to stay on the floor. That helps to make it feasible for Oweh to maintain a team’s defensive rating. He doesn’t get involved in every play as the first line of defense, as teams will try to target defenders without his physical tools and athleticism. Oweh’s main area of development is that his game is too perimeter-minded. In the first play, he sticks around the three-point line while the ball handler already tried to play the entry pass to the big man he's assigned to.
The rotation was too late. In the second possession, Oweh should have focused on covering the weak side interior rather than sticking to his man too close, which made him vulnerable to baiting Oweh out to the perimeter so the opponent could have the wide-open cutting lane in the middle. The chase-down was impressive, forcing his man to earn two points from the line, but allowing the backdoor cut took all the value away from that.
In the third possession, Oweh does well to rotate back to the perimeter but gets caught ball-watching while playing help defense. He lost control of his assignment, where using tags is essential to fight back when teams try to get backdoor cutters going with defense collapses inside. In this particular play, Oweh saw his man moving to the basket while he was still checking his rotations. We see a similar play in the fourth rotation while the opponent got multiple bodies inside, Oweh was still searching his rotations. He got the one near the elbow, but his decision-making in rotations has to be more fluid to effectively grow into an above-average team defender. As of today, it’s likely slow rotations will cost a team some defensive rating with him on the floor.
Pick-and-roll
Oweh’s best to play as a pick-and-roll defender where his size, toughness, and frame can help him to effectively guard the ball handler while offering enough resistance to the screening big man. His screen navigation is decent. Even if he’s stuck in the screen, his excellent length allows him to compensate for it. That’s a recipe NBA front offices are willing to bet on. He’s active in his relocations, looking to use his length to tag and find a way to slide between the ball handler and screener.
However, in the first play below, the double screen didn’t lead to help the defender arrive. He did well to dodge it the first time but fell right into the big man’s trap in the second. Regardless, he got the hand in the face of the shooter, showing his gritty style while knowing how to use his length to his advantage. In the second play, we see the value of his frame on display. He’s great at taking on the hit, not allowing the ball handler to separate. However, he got sold on the jab, thinking of another dribble penetration after the ball handler switched hands. That gave away the angle for the midrange jumper Regardless, it’s a good decision, as it’s best to give away a tough shot rather than not able to stop a downhill drive with the paint staying uncrowded.
In the third play, Oweh does well in the second line of defense, taking over the assignment of guarding the ball handler. He takes the hit well, forcing the ball handler with another try outside the paint before he blocks the shot. The foul call felt too rich, as the physicality wasn’t out of proportion. His physical tools to be an above-average pick-and-roll defender are there, but the decision-making is not consistent. In the fourth possession, Oweh sees the screening big man coming closer to the rim, a sign of him being willing to give more space for the pull-up three as the opponent loaded up to attack the rim. He shouldn’t have gone over the screen there, which left him trailing with the ball handler’s straight-line drive to the rim. The tagging in the process was decent but not enough to compensate for the mistake.
He should be more comfortable with dropping more in his coverage. The fifth play is an example where the shooter got separated after the drag screen, but Oweh found a way to elevate for his jump and contest the shot regardless. Knowing NBA front offices attempt to rely less on drop coverage, Oweh’s decision-making is the essential key to unlocking more possibilities in the future. The potential to be a plus pick-and-roll defender is there if the decision-making improves.
Catch-and-drives
Regardless of improvement, NBA front offices can look forward to instant toughness and grit with Oweh closing out to the perimeter. He’s thriving on physicality while getting stops against dribble penetration. His effective defense against creative scorers looking to get downhill will boost a team’s defensive rating as the odds of defenses are reduced, with Oweh closing out or guarding in the point of attack. His quick hands, improving footwork, and strength level help him to get scorers out of balance and make it much tougher to execute their reads.
In the first play, Oweh is overaggressive. But it’s still a good play on his part, as he’s far away from the rim but immediately forces the ball handler to beat him off the dribble. He’s staying attached well, but the push before the runner wasn’t necessary. The second play is an interesting one, confirming what’s mentioned above. His last step is close to elite. Oweh’s so comfortable with his quick lateral movement while able to put in and pivot his last step so well and slide his feet after that. That forced the opponent to the second try with the extra pass, and that’s where Oweh smelled blood to impact passing lanes. He has good instincts to get deflections, and his stop gave him control over the possession, rewarding his stellar effort with the steal and transition opportunity.
We see another example of his elite last step in the third play below. He’s close to reacting to the dribble penetration after that but does well to compensate from behind. In the best case, Oweh’s using his arms well to close driving angles, which he didn’t do there. On top of that, Oweh’s not vulnerable to overhelp on defense, as shown in the fourth play below. He’s closing the driving angle while keeping control of his assignment. The opponent fell for the trap, but in the NBA, with more room and space, his length is the differentiating factor that allows him to defend in the same way.
Catch-and-shoot
Oweh’s great length and vertical pop help him in using his advantages of closing out well to properly contest three-point shots. His last step is the differentiator that helps him fully bank on his physical tools. There’s no excuse as every NBA player has a certain high level of effort, but with Oweh it often exceeds that. His will to get stops against shooters is visible immediately when watching him.
I like his technique of using his length to put his arms up high and force shooters to use high-arcing shots, whereafter he brings the arm down to completely disrupt the shooting motion. His footwork is good before the jump, as he’s bringing himself in balance at 180 degrees before letting his verticality do the work. The first play below is a good example.
In the second possession, the opponent ran a play to free up the shooter from Oweh, where he did well to keep up with the off-ball movement, compensating for his lack of balance before the closeout with the quick lateral movement. In the third play, Oweh’s quick reaction to the offensive rebound, as he contests the shot and immediately gets in transition, possibly giving his team instant two points when clearing the defensive rebound. Regardless of that not happening, these are the habits that can turn defensive effort into instant production on the other hand, benefitting both defensive and offensive ratings, especially considering the faster-paced style in the NBA.
The fourth and fifth plays below show how comfortable Oweh is in closing out in larger amounts of space. His ability to change a wide-open three to a contested three is the value NBA scouts look for.
NBA Draft Projection
Based on the strengths and areas of development mentioned in this scouting report, I project Otega Oweh to be a surefire second-rounder in the 2025 NBA Draft. His role as a connective guard with a top notch first step and rim pressure will intrigue every NBA front office. His role is clear, and scorers in the NBA need a connective guard with his defensive versatility next to them.
There have been rumors of Oweh declining a two-way deal while returning to school and improving his craft instead. That makes it more likely that his camp won’t settle for anything less than a guaranteed contract. We’ve seen NBA teams hand these out to many second-round picks in 2023 and 2024, so that makes it feasible that Oweh might be the next one in line.
I try to stay away from comparisons, but Otega Oweh’s role and skillset reminds me of how the Sacramento Kings used Keon Ellis in his first two seasons.