Otega Oweh Joins Thunder in Second Round. His Brother Plays for Washington.

Odafe Oweh is a problem for NFL offensive linemen. Now his little brother is about to become one for NBA defenders.

The Oklahoma City Thunder selected Otega Oweh with the 41st overall pick in the second round of the 2026 NBA Draft on Wednesday night. The pick came after OKC traded down from No. 37, sending the original selection to the Miami Heat in exchange for No. 41 and cash. Miami used that pick on Louisville guard Ryan Conwell.

So now the Oweh household has two professional athletes. Odafe is a defensive end for the Washington Commanders. Otega is a 6-foot-5, 216-pound guard who just finished a monster senior season at Kentucky. He averaged 18.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.8 steals per game while shooting 46.5% from the field and 33.3% from three-point range. He shot 73.1% from the free-throw line and averaged 2.1 combined steals and blocks per contest across 36 games.

But the numbers only tell part of the story. Otega took the kind of winding college path that used to be rare but is now basically the norm. Two seasons at Oklahoma, then two at Kentucky. His breakout came at OU as a sophomore, when he averaged 11.4 points per game. Then he transferred to Lexington and went nuclear.

The Kentucky takeover

Otega’s first season under Mark Pope earned him All-SEC Second Team honors after he put up 16.2 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. Then he did it again as a senior, leading the Wildcats with 18.6 points per game and earning another All-SEC Second Team nod.

Against SEC opponents in 2025-26, he was even better. He averaged 21.1 points per game in conference play. He also scored 1,255 points across his two seasons at Kentucky, which is the highest total any player has ever put up in their first two years at the school. That’s not just a stat. That’s a statement about how quickly he adapted and how much they leaned on him.

And he had one of those March Madness moments that people remember. In the opening round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament, Otega hit a half-court shot at the buzzer against Santa Clara to force overtime. It didn’t end with a deep run, but that moment alone showed the kind of nerve he plays with.

Tools the Thunder love

Otega’s measurements are basically a cheat sheet for an NBA wing. A reported 6-foot-8.25 wingspan. An 8-foot-5 standing reach. Those numbers help explain why he held isolation matchups to 27% shooting, navigated screens effectively, and forced turnovers with active hands. He’s not just a scorer. He can guard.

Offensively, he attacks the rim with real purpose. He finished 61% of his attempts at the basket and produced 1.313 points per possession in transition. That’s the kind of efficient aggression that translates even if the three-point shot takes time to stabilize.

The Thunder loaded up in this draft. They took Michigan center Aday Mara at No. 12 and Iowa guard Bennett Stirtz at No. 16 in the first round. Then they added Otega in the second. With OKC’s roster already deep, the expectation (according to draft analysts) is that he’ll start on a two-way contract. But this is the same organization that has turned second-round picks into rotation players before. If he works the way their development system usually works, Otega has a real path to sticking around.

And if nothing else, the family debates about which pro sport is harder just got a lot more interesting.