The blow everyone feared is now official. The Georgetown Hoyas were already watching their season slip away, and now they’ve lost KJ Lewis, the one player who was helping them in trying to hold it together.

Sitting at 13–15 overall and tied for the bottom of the Big East standings at 5–12, the Hoyas’ head coach Ed Cooley, has been searching for answers amid inconsistency, injuries, and missed opportunities. Instead, he just lost the one steady piece in his rotation.

As per the latest updates by the program, junior guard Lewis will miss the remainder of the 2025-26 NCAA season with a left ankle injury, confirming fears that surfaced after Tuesday’s 76–60 loss to the Marquette Golden Eagles. In that game, KJ Lewis went down late in the first half of the matchup while battling for a rebound and did not return to the court. However, he was seen on the bench later using crutches.

But truth be told, this is a crushing development for a Georgetown team that relied heavily on Lewis’ production.

In his first season in Washington after transferring from the Arizona Wildcats, Lewis appeared in all 28 games, starting 27 and averaging nearly 30 minutes per night.

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He led the Hoyas with a career-best 14.9 points per game, along with 5.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.1 steals.

But beyond the stat sheet, KJ Lewis represented stability. In a locker room reshaped by six incoming transfers, he had stepped into a full-time starting role and embraced the responsibility of carrying the scoring load.

Now, with the regular season winding down and the Big East Tournament looming, Georgetown must figure out how to replace not just almost 15 points per night, but the rhythm and identity that came with it.

With KJ Lewis Out, Who Steps Up for Ed Cooley Now?

The first name that jumps out of the hat is Malik Mack.

Mack, also a junior guard for the Hoyas, is currently averaging 13.7 points and 4.2 assists per game and has operated as Georgetown’s primary initiator for much of the season. So with Lewis out, the offense will lean even more heavily on him, and you can expect his usage to climb, especially late in games, where Lewis often created his own shot.

On the wing, Caleb Williams may be asked to expand beyond his current role. The 6-foot-7 sophomore is averaging 9.3 points per contest and provides positional length similar to Lewis, but his offensive approach differs.

He thrives off movement and secondary actions. But now Williams may need to evolve into a more assertive half-court scorer rather than a complementary piece because that’s what his team needs.

Then there’s Jeremiah Williams, the veteran transfer whose value has often shown up in subtle ways. While he doesn’t replicate Lewis’ shot volume, he offers ball-handling stability and decision-making. So his move into the starting lineup feels logical if coach Cooley prioritizes structure over scoring punch.

However, if maintaining defensive intensity becomes the priority, sophomore Kayvaun Mulready could see his minutes spike.

While replacing KJ Lewis won’t be an easy task, Georgetown’s hopes now rest on whether a collective effort can steady a season that’s already on the brink. But they must do it fast because the Hoyas only have three more games before the regular season is over.