NBA Draft: Jalen Wilson's Experience Can Help Thunder’s Wing Depth

Kansas Jayhawks' Jalen Wilson put up big numbers this season, but can his game help the Oklahoma City Thunder?

At first glance, Kansas’ star forward Jalen Wilson isn’t the most enticing NBA prospect. The 6-foot-7 forward boasts a wingspan measuring just 6-foot-8 and will be almost 23 years old by the time the 2023-24 season rolls around. And outside of his scoring output, his statistics aren’t anything to write home about.

ESPN’s “Best Available” list has Wilson ranked as the 40th best prospect in the 2023 NBA Draft. Jonathan Givony, ESPN’s draft analyst and architect of the list, describes Wilson as having “very little length and explosiveness,” and “isn’t blessed with huge upside.”

Digging deeper into Wilson’s game reveals that he might just be a hidden gem.

This season, Wilson pumped out 20.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game on 43% shooting as the first option for Kansas’ offense. That’s a long way to come from being the 51st ranked prospect coming out of high school.

However, his percentages and advanced stats weren’t the greatest for his age as Wilson shot below 34% from the 3-point line and posted a slightly negative assist-to-turnover ratio. What’s worse is his at-rim finishing numbers where he converted only 56.7% of his shots at the rim, a below average number especially for a player his size.

On the other hand, Wilson did shoulder a lot of responsibility and was asked to create for himself like never before, evidenced by a nearly 30 percent usage rate.

In 2021-22, Wilson had less responsibility, playing third fiddle — a role he is more suited to play in the NBA — behind Ochai Agbaji and Christian Braun. That season, he shot 66.4% at the rim and posted a positive (1.4) assist-to-turnover ratio en route to becoming a national champion, alleviating some of the concerns about his translation to the big leagues.

Wilson’s defensive ability and metrics are promising, too.

At 215 pounds, he has the strength and competitiveness to contain some smaller guards, power forwards, and a lot of wings. When he is engaged he is capable of staying in front, keeping his hands up and forcing opponent’s into awkward positions, evidenced by a 1.6% steal rate and a 1.4% block rate over his last two years and a 21.5% defensive rebounding rate over three years at Kansas.

It’s certainly not all sunshine and rainbows for Wilson and he will have his work cut out for him in the NBA, but his competitiveness and success on the defensive end combined with his improvements and experience as a creator on the offensive end could make for a versatile weapon that the Oklahoma City Thunder can hone for years to come and add to their already interesting corps of wings.

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