Maxwell Lewis' Brooklyn Nets tenure may have been derailed before it started. Appearing in his first game since joining the team alongside D'Angelo Russell in a trade from the Los Angeles Lakers, the 22-year-old suffered what appeared to be a serious knee injury on Wednesday at Toronto.

After checking in with three minutes remaining during a blowout loss, Lewis drained a three on his opening possession. However, Jakob Poeltl stepped on his foot, causing his knee to buckle as he stumbled backward. He remained down for an extended period and needed to be carried off the court.

“The toughest part of today is seeing one of our guys go down. We're all thinking about Max,” head coach Jordi Fernandez said of the injury. “We don't know the extent of the injury… All our group is thinking about him. We're sending all positive energy. That's what's most important. The rest of the game doesn't matter right now.”

 

Lewis is in his second NBA season after the Lakers selected him with the 40th pick in the 2023 draft.

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Maxwell Lewis suffers knee injury during Nets debut

Los Angeles Lakers forward Maxwell Lewis (20) warms up before the game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center.
Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

The 6-foot-7 wing earned second-team All-West Coast Conference honors as a sophomore at Pepperdine in 2022-23, averaging 17.1 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.8 assists on 47/35/79 shooting splits. He averaged 17.7 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.9 blocks on 40/34/82 shooting splits over 10 G League appearances with the South Bay Lakers this season.

With Dorian Finney-Smith traded and Cam Johnson expected to follow ahead of the Feb. 6 deadline, Lewis could receive his first extended NBA opportunity as this season progresses. However, his injury casts doubt over his availability moving forward.

Fernandez said Lewis will receive an MRI on his knee on Thursday.