Alabama Basketball: Kira Lewis 2020 NBA Draft profile

Kira Lewis will take his Alabama basketball talents to the NBA.

Kira Lewis had an amazing two seasons with Alabama basketball, and he will now be playing in the NBA. After a great sophomore campaign with the Crimson Tide, Lewis decided to join the NBA Draft pool. While other players are still weighing their options, Lewis has made his decision final. There is a lot that is up in the air in terms of the 2020 NBA Draft, but it’s not too early to look ahead at his profile.

Lewis plays as a speedy point guard with range as a shooter, but a lot of his upside comes with his age. He was a literal child in his freshman season, so he will be younger than most NBA prospects despite playing college basketball for two years. Other than that, let’s look ahead at some of his strengths and weaknesses as a prospect.

Alabama basketball’s Kira Lewis’s NBA Draft profile

Strengths

Kira’s biggest strength is obviously his blazing speed. He seems to get faster with the basketball in his hand. He loves to use this speed in the fast break and consistently scores around the basket. Lewis also has quality handles for a player of his age. Those skills will surely develop as he progresses his game to the professional level.

Kira Lewis also loves to shoot the deep ball. He’s no Stephen Curry, but his ability to score from deep off the dribble has to be respected. He adds this threat to the screen offense, forcing defenders to go over every screen. It’s really a double-edged sword. Go over the screen, get beat to the rim. Go under the screen, have a three drained in your eyes. Rotate in the paint, and Kira will find the open man and get the assist.

Lewis had to be the sole facilitator of Alabama basketball’s offense as a sophomore, so he is able to run a true point guard position. He can put everyone else in a better position to score, so watch out for him in the NBA.

Weaknesses

Kira’s biggest weakness is probably his defense. He’s not the biggest guy, so he can’t switch well on ball screens. He also turns the ball over too much for a franchise point guard. To be fair, he played almost every minute of every Alabama basketball game with the offense revolving around him.

Player comparison: De’Aaron Fox

De’Aaron Fox loves to use his speed to score in the paint. He also can facilitate an offense relatively well. This is not a perfect comparison, though. Fox attacks with more aggression as opposed to Kira’s finesse, and Lewis shoots more from beyond the arc. However, it’s as close as I can think of to a player in the current NBA.

Projection: Middle of the 1st round

Kira could go anywhere from the late lottery selections to the early 20’s. There are plenty of teams in that range that could use a point guard, and he should join a team ready to compete for the Playoffs. We’ll see where he goes later, but this seems like a likely option.

Kira Lewis is going to do big things for an NBA franchise, just like how he did big things for Alabama basketball.