Why this Duke Prospect Could be a Perfect Fit with OKC Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder have one of the most complete rosters in the NBA.

Led by an MVP winner and gifted scorer in Shai GIlgeous-Alexander, who is flanked by an All-NBA wing in Jalen Williams, an All-Defense honoree in Lu Dort, and a versatile center with Defensive Player of the Year potential in Chet Holmgren, OKC shoule be primed for more success.

Alongside the aforemetntioned group, the Thunder boast an impressive group of role players, including Cason Wallace, Alex Caruso, Isaiah Hartenstein, Kenrich Williams, Ajay Mitchell and others.

That roster helped Oklahoma City win 68 games during the regular season and make a hard-fought run through the NBA playoffs en route to the team's first title. Even after a record-breaking season, though, there are still areas the Thunder could improve its roster.

OKC managed to win the NBA Finals despite a lackluster 3-point shooting performance in the postseason, and may need to improve from beyond the arc to win another championship. Over the offseason, Sam Presti and company didn't make any sweeping changes to the roster, which should make the Thunder a threat to win the finals again, but also brings back the same concerns.

Additionally, the Thunder have a few solid wing players, but still need more depth at the position behind Jalen Williams and Aaron Wiggins.

For that reason, OKC could be a great fit for Duke wing prospect Isaiah Evans.

Evans was a five-star recruit in the 2024 cycle, rated the No. 13 overall player and No. 4 small forward in the country. As a true freshman, Evans played alongside top 10 picks Cooper Flagg, Kon Knueppel and Khaman Maluach.

Taking a backseat to a trio of top picks, Evans wasn't the primary option in Duke's attack, but the talented wing player still averaged 6.8 points and 1.1 rebounds in 13.8 minutes per contest. In his first year of college basketball, the highly touted recruit shot 43.2% from the field and 41.6% from deep on more than four attempts per game.

As a sophomore, Evans will still share the court with a number of high-profile recruits and NBA Draft hopefuls, including potential No. 1 overall pick Cameron Boozer, but after a year at Duke, evans should be ready to step into a bigger role for Jon Scheyer's team.

Still 19-years-old, Evans' length at 6-foot-6 and 3-point shooting prowess could make him a good fit in Oklahoma City. Additionally, the sophomore has experience as a role player after helping his team to the Final 4 in 2024-25, and shouldn't have an issue playing in a rotation rather than being the primary option.

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