Ron Lewis

Lewis is another guy who has clearly been taking advantage of the strength and conditioning program at IMG, showing a strong and very compact upper body, despite his fairly narrow frame. He is yet another of Thorpe's pupils with very good shooting mechanics, elevating high off the ground and displaying an identical release point time in and time out. His footwork is the most noticeable improvement seen here so far, coming off screens beautifully, balancing his shoulders quickly, and elevating cleanly to release his picture-perfect shot. He made a living in the five on five doing this, constantly moving off the ball looking for an opening to get his shot off.

Lewis probably isn't even going to be a shot-creator at the next level, as his ball-handling skills just aren't strong enough to consistently keep his man off-balance. Besides, he isn't the biggest or strongest guy in the world. He is more than athletic enough to get to the rim off one of two short dribbles, though, something that he showed when utilizing a quick pump-fake or punishing a defender who was scrambling frantically to get out and guard the perimeter. Lewis has been working pretty hard on his man to man defense here, modeling his game after Phoenix Suns shooting guard Raja Bell. It was tough to evaluate this part of his game in this particular setting, so we'll have to keep an eye on that at the pre-draft camp.

After having played a stellar tournament filled with clutch shots and big scoring performances, Lewis took a big step back in Ohio State’s Final Four win over Georgetown. Offensively, the senior played his worst game by far of the tournament, unable to get anything going from the field.

Usually a pretty controlled player going to the basket, Lewis forced several tough shots in the lane, but got bailed out a couple of times on foul calls. The senior was efficient from the free throw line, but that was about the only thing he did well on the offensive end of the floor. He hit just one field goal in the game, a pull up jumper from the elbow late in the first half. Lewis also struggled from behind the arc, missing all three outside shots he took, despite having shot nearly 50% from deep during the tournament. As a whole, Lewis just looked out of it on the offensive end, rarely moving without the basketball, tending to just wait on the perimeter for the ball to come to him. This was very evident mid-way through the first half when a pass intended for Lewis was deflected because he didn’t come to meet it, but waited for the ball to reach him instead.

Lewis was able to salvage some of his performance on the defensive end where he made some nice plays, including grabbing 3 steals. He made one particularly nice strip of a ball against Georgetown’s Jessie Sapp that led to a breakaway lay up for teammate Mike Conley Jr. Lewis was also able to come down with a couple of nice defensive rebounds in traffic thanks to his athleticism.

This was a disappointing performance from Lewis, who prior to this game had helped his stock more than perhaps any other player in the tournament. The National Championship game still remains though, and with a world wide audience watching, Lewis has a chance to come up big one last time for the Buckeyes and leave college with a positive final impression in the eyes of scouts.

Lewis improved his stock once again with another big time performance, helping Ohio State advance to the Final Four. The fifth year senior posted his third straight 20-point game in the tournament, leading the Buckeye’s scoring attack.

Most of Lewis’ damage was done at the free throw line, where he was perfect, scoring 10 of his 22 points. He was very aggressive driving to the basket and was able to pick up quite a number of shooting fouls. Lewis isn’t the greatest slasher in the world due to his mediocre ball-handling skills, but he is quick and strong, and when he gets any kind of opening he’ll take off and make things very hard on defenders trying to stop him from getting into the lane. Once in the paint he was looking to finish strong around the rim, but did pull up once for a soft floater that didn’t connect. His deceptive moves and good use of screens always makes Lewis a threat to go to the hole if the opportunity presents itself.

As he has shown time and time again this season and in the tournament, Lewis has a knack for hitting big shots. With 4:33 remaining in the Buckeye’s match up with Memphis, Lewis drilled a very deep three that would prove to be the dagger in the game, putting Ohio State up by seven. A good, but not great outside shooter as far as his career numbers go, Lewis likes to pull up off of screens from behind the arc, as he did so twice in the game.

Lewis played a good game defensively for the Buckeyes, having an above average game on the boards and staying aggressive in on the ball situations. At only 6-5, Lewis relied on his strength and quickness to come away with nearly twice his season average for rebounds, which proved big for the Buckeye’s when Greg Oden was sitting for extended periods with foul trouble. On the ball, Lewis was aggressive, but because he isn’t the smartest of most aware player in the world, has a tendency to play alongside his man rather than staying in front of him. This led to Lewis getting beaten off the dribble a couple of times.

The deeper into the tournament Ohio State goes, the better of a shot Lewis has of being drafted this summer. After topping 20 points only twice all season, he has done it in three out of four tournament games, and has played great in late game situations. He is a pure scorer, and has the makings of a solid scoring option to bring off the bench in the NBA. Still, Lewis is no lock by any means for the next level, but with a strong performance in the final four and in pre-draft camps, he will put himself in good position to be a second round draft pick. He is scheduled to play in Portsmouth starting April 4th, but if his team makes the final game on April 2nd, that could very well change.

Mr. Clutch came through yet again for Ohio State, after a lackluster first half performance which he saw his squad fall behind by 20 points. Nothing new was shown by the scoring wing in terms of perimeter skills, but it was clear that when Ohio State needed buckets, the ball was going to be in the hands of Lewis, or freshman sensation Mike Conley Jr.

In terms of pure scoring ability, there have been very few who have proven to be more consistent throughout the NCAA tourney, posting games of 27 and 25 points respectively in wins over Xavier and Tennessee. He has also proven to be a big-time player late in games, making huge shots with his team trailing, even if he had been cold throughout the entire game. The Columbus native’s desire to take and make big shots as the game goes on is an enviable trait that so many players on the collegiate level would love to have. He even stepped it up on the defensive end late in the game, blocking an inside shot that Ivan Harris committed a foul on, despite the inadequacies that he’s shown on the defensive end throughout the entire season.

Lewis was absolutely unstoppable for the Buckeyes as the game went on and his squad ran their 3 man weave, allowing each guard who touched the ball to isolate their respective man when the opportunity presented itself. Despite his questionable ball handling skills, he was able to use his superb athleticism to blow by defenders and get to the rim throughout the game. Lewis was noticeably better when star center Greg Oden was on the floor, as he didn’t have to create as much for himself off of the dribble, being able to feed off of the attention that the 7-footer received each time he touched the ball on the low blocks. With Oden on the court, he was able to spot up in open areas and torch defenders on his way to the basket with his explosive first step, as they often came at him with out of control close outs.

If Lewis does find his way into the NBA, it will be as a complementary scoring punch off of the bench, so playing with a possible top draft pick will prove beneficial for him in terms of the style of play he will have to adjust to in the NBA.

While the Buckeye senior was able to score on absolutely anyone who guarded him this evening, his two biggest faults were put on center stage yet again. First, he was absolutely torched defensively against the Volunteers, especially in half one. He just seems to lose focus constantly and completely lacks any defensive fundamentals whatsoever, despite his immense physical attributes. Second, his shaky ball-handling skills were showcased when Mike Conley Jr. left the game with foul trouble and he was forced to handle the ball a bit more then he would have liked to. Lewis is not the type of guy who is going to beat you with remarkable ball-handling skills, preferring to utilize his outstanding athleticism to get straight to the rim despite his marginal dribbling ability. Defense and ball-handling are the two major areas that Ron will surely look to improve upon before his showings at the pre-draft camps this summer.

In terms of helping their draft stock, there have been very few who have helped themselves more than Lewis has throughout the NCAA tournament. He has consistently shown the ability to score on anyone in the nation, in the most opportune moments too. Only Mike Conley Jr. has been anywhere near as crucial to the Buckeyes’ success late in the game as Ron Lewis has, and he has now proven himself to be one of the more clutch players that the college game has to offer. It is still up in the air whether that will be enough to get him drafted, but with a strong conclusion to the NCAA tournament and good pre-draft workouts, it is certainly not out of the question for Ron to hear his name called on draft night.

Ohio State would be making the trip back Interstate 71 to Columbus at the moment, had it not been for the clutch play of senior Ron Lewis. When the Buckeyes needed someone to step up and score buckets late in the game, they looked to him, not heralded freshman Greg Oden, Mike Conley Jr., or Daequan Cook. The Columbus native single-handedly prolonged Ohio State’s chances in winning a national championship in regulation, allowing Conley to take the duties in the overtime session.

While Lewis did not exactly show scouts anything more then they had already seen, he played his game to it’s fullest capabilities. He used his athleticism to convert contested buckets around the rim, while also blowing by defenders off of the dribble. His steady ball-handling skills allowed him to fool opposing players off the dribble, where he used his deceptive quickness to break down the Xavier defense. Lewis shot the lights out of the ball both off of the dribble and from a stationary position, evidenced by his three point jumpshot with 1 second left in regulation. Although his mechanics may seem a bit awkward at times, he has shown that he is always a threat behind the three point line and is awfully confident in his jumper, as shown by the fact that over half of his shot attempts on the year were three pointers.

Of course Lewis has faults as a player, namely his defense and shot selection (which was not a problem today). He struggled keeping the Xavier wings in front of him at times, despite his more than decent athleticism. It is always frustrating to see a player who has all of the potential to be a consistent defender play questionable defense, and hopefully Lewis will grasp better defensive fundamentals at the next level if he hopes to have a long career. Lewis' 2 assists against XU was actually higher then his season average, giving you the picture of how one dimensional the Columbus native truly is.

Today’s game showed everyone how special of a player Lewis has the potential to become when under control. His scoring abilities were put on stage on the national level this season, and just about everyone in the country will surely keep their eye on him for the remainder of time that Ohio State is in the tournament. Pre-Draft workouts will be crucial for him, but with a strong NCAA tournament, it would surely not be out of the question to see him drafted in the second round when it is all said and done.

Ron is a tough matchup on the perimeter, due to his combination of quickness, body control, and outside shooting ability. His one on one skills allow him to get into the lane on virtually anyone, where he is able to finish with his nice athleticism and outstanding body control. The Columbus native has shown the ability to consistently finish despite drawing contact, with either hand around the rim. His dribble drives are often set up by his outstanding outside shooting ability, evidenced by his 47.7% 3PT field goal percentage this season. While the form on his shot is a bit awkward, he has no problem getting it off in a hurry, whether it be from a spot up position or off of the dribble creating for himself.

On the down side, Lewis is not a very good defender at the moment, although his he has the potential to become one down the road due to his raw athletic ability. He seems to lose focus at times on the defensive end, and does not exert the same effort as he does on the offensive side of things. Against UNC, Lewis lost focus of both Wayne Ellington and Marcus Ginyard at various times, resulting in open looks for both of the Carolina swingmen.

Offensively, Lewis has displayed very little in terms of a mid range jumpshot, scoring the vast majority of his points right at the rim, or from deep bombs from the land of three. Big 10 teams with solid defensive rotation will key in on this, and will surely make him put the ball on the floor when he touches it, knowing that he’s going to attack the rim, and will have a big man waiting for him in the paint. Lewis is also a pretty marginal ball handler and creator for others, as he looks a bit shaky at times handling the ball, and does not get the ball to open shooters often once he drives into the paint.

Lewis will be a player that scouts will surely follow as the season goes on. It will be interesting to see how his style of play adjusts with the addition of Greg Oden, as he will surely not have as many isolation opportunities for himself on the wing. Lewis is a much more interesting prospect than recent Ohio State stars Je’kel Foster and Terrance Dials were, and has a shot of being drafted if he is able to continue his outstanding of play of late, while becoming a more complete player. As it stands now however, Ron is on the outside looking in, but has the potential of landing somewhere in the second round when it is all said and done. He’ll almost certainly have his chance to impress at Portsmouth and possibly the NBA pre-draft camp.