Who was the steal of the draft? Which teams made risky moves? Our experts share their postdraft superlatives.
? Which team drafted the best class? And which players could be named first-team All-Rookie? We have spent years studying the prospects in the 2025 class, and here are the moves we liked, the moves that surprised us and we'll share a few long-term predictions.
Not only did the Heat get the No. 10 player on my big board, they also got a player who fills a roster void and fits their culture and style of play perfectly. Jakucionis has the ballhandling and playmaking ability to offer much-needed shot creation in the backcourt, but he also is big enough to operate off the ball alongside All-Star combo guard coming off a strong playoff showing, the three could certainly play in the same lineup at times, thanks to Jakucionis' size, strength and perimeter shooting prowess -- positional versatility that is ideal for the modern NBA.. He adds to the Heat's growing roster of international performer in recent years, including Lithuanian and Russian players. The Heat also have Sweden's I can't tell you whether the Suns will be any good next season. But I can say they did a good job of addressing some of last season's problems, particularly by drafting Maluach, who is the exact type of jumbo paint protector Phoenix was sorely missing. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say the Suns had zero defensive identity last season, and Maluach and his agent's alleged threat to a top-five team before the draft to potentially not report to camp, it wasn't surprising to see this situation amicably resolved, likely in no small part due to Bailey's lack of leverage because of the NBA's collective bargaining agreement and the public relations backlash this move generated.and sees how fortunate he is to land in a situation with an ample opportunity, a lack of star power, an outstanding coaching staff and a highly passionate fan base, he should quickly realize he is in the perfect place to reach All-Star potential. I'm more optimistic on Demin's future than some seem to be -- there will always be a premium placed on prospects in his mold as a jumbo playmaker, and I understand why the Nets believed he was worth the dive that early in the draft. Going to a team where he'll get a chance to play right away with plenty of on-ball reps, pair with the other talented passers in Brooklyn's draft class and also hone his shooting is ideal. His rookie season could be something of a crucible, but his unselfish style of play falls in line with how the Nets clearly want their team to look. Landing in a blank slate situation like this could be huge for Demin, as opposed to having to fight for minutes on a deeper roster that might have limited the opportunity to spread his wings. I'm still surprised McNeeley fell to the end of the first round. Known for his shooting prowess for most of his career, McNeeley hit only 32% of his 3s at UConn this season. He had several workouts where he struggled to shoot as effectively in private settings as NBA teams had hoped. I've seen McNeeley shoot lights-out in many different settings and firmly believe he will thrive with NBA spacing in a smaller offensive role than he was asked to shoulder at UConn. He also brings more to the table with his size , toughness, feel for the game and overall skill level. It's not easy to find this type of player, so I believe the Hornets will end up getting a steal with this pick.Miami benefited from some of the unexpected decisions ahead of it by drafting a player who some viewed as a top-10 prospect -- and one who also fits the Heat's need for a playmaking guard. He was ultimately a little more polarizing than we expected, but my guess is this one will age better for the Heat than it will for the teams that passed on him.A lot of people had a hard time understanding why we kept Demin in our top 10 all year, especially as he was struggling badly in Big 12 play. Still, I was a little surprised to see him selected ahead of Khaman Maluach and Jakucionis, who I had in front of him on our Top 100 big board. We had heard the Nets wanted to come out of this draft with a starting point guard, and they now have three candidates for that position: Demin, I love the fact Demin will be empowered to reach his full potential in an outsized role , where he'll be able to play through mistakes, but will also have playmakers alongside him. Ideally, there would be a little more shooting to be found in this group, but that's something the Nets can work through long term, potentially with another high pick in next year's loaded draft, where My reaction was closer to fascination than shock. Yang has an intriguing skill set for a teenage big who was going to be worth someone rolling the dice on. I liked what I saw from him at the combine, but there was no expectation that he would wind up inside the top 20, and it's a big gamble on his offensive talent ultimately translating from a low level in China. The only team that was widely tied to Yang was the Nets, who held four picks behind the Trail Blazers in the first round. I understand why Portland took him where it did, as a blanket statement on draft strategy. If you love a guy, just take him, don't risk it. Trading back was probably a challenge, but even with that rationale, the thought of Yang going that high never crossed my mind in any scenario. quite a bit. Knueppel's feel for the game, selfless style of play, strength and toughness should make him easy to play with, especially alongside, who he could complement quite well. I was a huge fan of Knueppel all season and was not surprised to see him go in the top five. With Kalkbrenner, the Hornets got a plug-and-play big who looks ready to play rotation minutes right away on a cheap rookie-scale deal. Charlotte needed someone NBA-ready after tradingfor the pick that got them McNeeley and a 2029 first-rounder, which I thought was a great move as well. Lucking into Harper was one thing, but the Spurs were right not to lean into any temptation to trade him and fast-track their competitive window. I understand the fit concerns, and it would be simpler wereGenerally speaking, we love to assign a sense of immediate title urgency to every team fortunate enough to employ superstar-caliber talent but one has to remember Wembanyama is. In my mind, there was never any need for San Antonio to do anything but select and see how these players grow together. Factor in No. 14 pick, who should complement his more ball dominant teammates with shooting and perimeter defense over time, and the Spurs could have an excellent thing going.jump into the action in either round, but it's understandable why both teams are prioritizing their playoff windows right now. This is less about the talent of players they drafted and more about how the Pelicans invited risk and fit concerns with their string of recent transactions. Fears is a real talent, but him maximizing it in what could be a crowded backcourt within a winning context -- neither can shoot from the perimeter or protect the paint at a high level, and they might ultimately get in each other's way. I'm concerned about the chances either lottery pick gets to use their talents in the situation. Of course, I understand a new front office targeting the guys they like, putting their stamp on the team and figuring out other things later. It would all be a little more palatable had the Pelicans not sold off their own draft pick next year to make it work -- a move that places pressure on their current group to take a huge collective step forward. Woo recapped the New Orleans side of the Queen deal, but a shoutout to the new Hawks front office is in order. The Hawks secured what I project to be the No. 8 pick in the 2026 NBA draft, just for moving down 10 spots in this draft. I had Queen rated 23 spots ahead of Newell on my personal big board, so there's certainly room to quibble about value. But it's fair to question the process New Orleans went through, clearly telegraphing its interest in Queen so strongly in the lead-up to the draft that it hurt its negotiating leverage. It led to giving up a potentially high draft pick in 2026, which should have netted New Orleans a lot more than what it did. I admittedly was not a huge Clayton proponent during the season, but the more I evaluated him, the more I started to buy his shotmaking talent as an intriguing bet in a draft class that was pretty light on point guards. The Jazz didn't have to pay much to do it, and while he might have to fight for minutes, there's a reasonable chance Clayton becomes a valuable contributor.in 2028 and two second-round picks . That feels like an awfully big haul to move up just five spots, even if there were a lot of rumblings that the. I wasn't especially sold on Coward being picked that high, so we'll have to see how this plays out. I would have liked to have seen Portland move down another five-to-10 picks for Yang, and perhaps pick up more assets in the process, but it seems the trade market softened quite a bit outside the top 15, with minimal movement in the second half of the first round.Considering all the circumstances, no matter how badly you believe in the Maryland center , trading away a 2026 first-round pick to move up 10 spots in this draft was hard for me to rationalize. It's less about the player and more about the process. I had him rated as the No. 15 player on my personal big board, 13 spots ahead of where he was drafted. He started the process as a projected top-10 pick, but it's not hard to understand why his stock fell, as he struggled to get on the floor for a loaded Real Madrid team. Had Gonzalez played for Ratiopharm Ulm, went to BYU , or spent a season with the NBL Next Stars program in Australia ... he would have been a clear lottery pick in my view. He built an impeccable résumé as one of the top prospects in international basketball in FIBA youth competitions and junior club competition prior to this season. I also love his fit in Boston, where he's certain to emerge as a fan favorite due to the frenetic intensity level he brings defensively. I was told Boston was telling agents it planned to sign whichever rookie it took with this pick for 80% of the rookie scale, but due to Gonzalez's significant buyout with Real Madrid , that won't be viable, as Gonzalez will already need to cover a significant portion of that out of his pocket. I probably saw more of him up close than anyone, as I saw Illinois live many times last season. I'm a big believer in Riley's talent and think there's a chance he rises to the top on a Wizards team that is going to give a lot of opportunities to their young talent. He's going to have to work hard at his physical development to make it happen -- Riley is 6-foot-8, 180 pounds -- but how many wings with legitimate size and offensive talent have ever been too skinny to make it in the NBA?He is the best player in this class and will be asked to play a significant role for the Mavs immediately, as they have very little shot creation on their roster currently and will need him to be a star from day one. They'll need him to essentially keep them afloat in the brutal Western Conference as they wait forThat's not to discredit any player in this draft, but I don't think this is a particularly bold call. He's walking into an excellent opportunity to stand out right away, and I suspect we'll see him figure the NBA out on the fly, and rather quickly.A first-team all-conference player in the loaded Big 12, Small carried an undermanned West Virginia team to the cusp of a NCAA tournament berth with steady shot creation and shotmaking while bringing major toughness on both ends of the floor, things that typically translate well to the G League. He'll be a handful to deal with in transition and should thrive in the wide-open nature of that league, likely putting up points in bunches while making winning plays on both ends of the floor. I would not be surprised to see him emerge as anotherNembhard will sign a two-way deal with the Mavericks, and the caveat here is that I could see him getting fast-tracked to a roster spot and NBA utility purely due to the Mavs' lack of point guard depth. I love Nembhard's feel for playmaking and involving teammates and believe he can transcend his size limitations . He'll be among the top guards in the G League whenever he's assigned there. The former Villanova guard was the No. 1 scorer in college basketball this season, averaging 23 points and shooting 41% from 3. He's not just a spot-up shooter though, he can hit tough side-step and iso pull-ups, and attacks closeouts to draw fouls at a strong rate. He stands 6-foot-8 with a powerful 260-pound frame, making him a true inside-out mismatch in themold. Dixon, 24, will need to prove he can hold his own defensively, but he's got some real toughness and physicality on top of his ability to stretch the floor. I like this addition quite a bit for the Lakers. I heard Lakers president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka spent time with Dixon after his predraft workout with the team. Apparently, Pelinka told Dixon the story of Kobe Bryant's visit to the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, which was cleared out for them. Pelinka said the first thing Bryant noticed was the lack of lighting and how Michelangelo was forced to do much of his work by candlelight, which demonstrated his attention to detail and the focus required to master his craft under tough conditions. Bryant related this to his work on the basketball court, imagining what Michelangelo's mindset might have been like at the time, in terms of perfecting his craft and creating a world-renowned masterpiece, despite less-than-ideal circumstances. The former Yale guard was one of the deep sleepers I grew to like over the course of the season. Poulakidas has strong proportions for a wing, he's a very good shooter already, and if he can step up his defensive contributions, there's a path for him to make it onto a roster through the backdoor . Quality 3-point marksmen with NBA size often get to skip the line more so than any other role archetype.in practice every day. Beringer, who grew an inch and a half over the past year, had never touched a basketball until summer 2021, as he was focused on soccer until a late growth spurt allowed him to outgrow the sport. He proved to be the top shot blocker in the Adriatic League during his first season of professional basketball, demonstrating exceptional instincts and agility as a drop defender and rim protector, giving him huge potential to grow into long term on that end of the floor. and Wolf . Clearly, the Nets want to build an unselfish team that shares the ball.I'm not as concerned about these guys getting in each other's way developmentally as some people seem to be. All of these players need to improve their perimeter shooting -- which is a fair critique and major variable. Still, I worry less about skill set overlap when you're bringing together guys who love to pass. Letting them all start their careers together, build chemistry and play a distinct style should facilitate easier looks all around. The Nets appear to have minutes for everybody as they prepare to spin the lottery wheel again next season -- and I think at least a few of these players will outkick expectations.), there were zero non-collegiate international players selected in the top 10 this year, and only six chosen in the first round. These are historically low numbers, but they could decrease even further next year, as we currently only project four non-collegiate international players to be picked in the first and second rounds, which will likely be the lowest we've seen in some time. The appeal of large NIL-related paydays in college has led many players to remain in school and has attracted more international players to the U.S., similar to what we saw with Demin and Jakucionis. Time will tell if revenue-sharing restrictions from the House settlement reduces the high NIL salaries we're seeing now, which might cause some international players to stay home and develop through the traditional European basketball path.Nearly all the first-round surprises we saw were by-products of teams simply trusting their boards and evaluation process above all else. Whether it was Memphis ensuring it snagged Coward, New Orleans going in big for Queen, Portland taking Yang higher than anyone expected or the Nets seeing value in making all five first-round picks, the draft is always in the eye of the beholder, and that's why mock drafts tend to go off the rails at a certain point.Federal agents blast door off, use drone during a Huntington Park raidMan charged in shootings of Santa Monica police officer, two teens
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