The lottery and combine for the 2025 NBA Draft were last week in Chicago. Now, with decisions to be made over the next few weeks following those evaluations and the draft a month out, the latest mock is out from those at ESPN.
ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo released their newest mock yesterday to start this week. It comes post-combine as their last one came post-lottery last week. This, now, based on their reporting while there, “reflects a thorough evaluation of the 2025 class and considers intel from scouts and front-office personnel” from around the NBA.
Here’s the latest mock draft from Givony and Woo on Monday.
Three months after an all-time bad trade when it happened, the lottery turned the Mavericks back around by giving them — a team that nearly still made the postseason out of the Play-In Tournament — the No. 1 overall pick and the right to select Flagg. All indications now are that Dallas will not overthink that pick with Flagg “thrilled with potentially joining a playoff-contending team with strong veterans,” per Givony.
Givony noted that there is still a question of whether he ends up being “‘merely’ an NBA All-Star, or if he can become one of the league’s most impactful players.” That said, considering his collegiate season where he ended up as National Player of the Year, Dallas will be more than fine with either as he becomes the face of the franchise following the disaster that was the Luka Dončić deal.
With the No. 1 pick all but certain, No. 2 is starting to look that way, too, per sources out of San Antonio. Woo, as well as Givony last week, are under “the wide assumption” that, “barring a blockbuster move”, the Spurs will be selecting Harper.
They could end up making a deal here, considering their circumstances and who could be available around the NBA. Coming out of the combine, though, the Spurs are “very comfortable with Harper, prioritizing the best available talent” on the board after Flagg in this draft class.
Philadelphia is then notable considering what it needs, as well as who’s left among the names after the top two. Still, Bailey, giving the Scarlet Knights consecutive picks in the top three, “is the natural fit here,” wrote Givony, with the versatility he has as a skilled forward at his size.
Again, the 76ers could make a deal with this pick depending on where they feel the franchise is with Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George. Even so, while they may maintain those negotiations to some point, Bailey “could be appealing as a reset to the team’s timeline” if they decide to go that way instead.
At this point, ESPN sees picks three and four as a differential between two players. With Bailey going third, that means Edgecombe will be fourth with this selection by Woo.
This is also “a natural fit” with “his downhill explosiveness, slashing style and significant defensive potential,” pairing well alongside a young corps in Charlotte. That’s just the floor, too, for Edgecombe to have a chance to develop into a key contributor for the Hornets.
The Jazz are in a difficult spot as they slid from the best odds in the lottery with the worst record in the league to the fifth overall pick in the draft. So, with several of the top names already off the board, Utah could take a chance on upside with Fears.
There’s a lot in Fears’ game at point as he has a “combination of size, speed, pace, shotmaking and shot creation” that allow him to “get anywhere on the floor,” wrote Givony. It’d affect what all they have at guard in the backcourt, but it’s among the better options after their slot slid as far as it could have last week.
Washington will also be chancing it on whichever players don’t make it into the top five after also seeing their pick slide. That, for Woo here, means a selection of Johnson, “who would fill an immediate need and also offer upside to grow as their potential long-term shooting guard”.
This spot might also be best for Johnson, too, as one of the more polarizing prospects in the draft. The Wizards “can offer him an immediate offensive role and develop him” that might fit best for his game, considering he’s far more scorer than a playmaker right now, if they were to choose him.
New Orleans, another team that fell from the top five, also may have to go upside here. There’s plenty of it, though, in Maluach, which “makes sense” to Givony.
Maluach is young and, with that, “has considerable room for growth physically and skill-wise” with him already at a large, seven-foot frame. Putting him in the middle for them to develop could make for a long-term pick that works out for the Pelicans.
Blue Devils go back-to-back with the Brooklyn Nets picking Kneuppel. That makes three selections in the Top 10 and six total in the 59 total involving the program in Durham.
Brooklyn has a lot of ways it could go, considering the veteran players and future assets that it has as a whole. Still, with Knueppel as “a nice building block” per Woo, the Nets would get “reliable offensive play and high-level shooting” that would fit “most lineups no matter how they choose to build long term”.
Toronto is another team with options in front of it with the roster it has set right now in The North. That could lead them to a player like Murray-Boyles, considering his own skill set.
CMB is a “fit in from a culture and toughness standpoint, adding more defensive versatility and playmaking” for the Raptors as a forward, says Givony. That’s despite not being as versatile, at least from a stretch-four standpoint, at this point in his progression.
Houston is in its own interesting position as a team that was the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference with the fourth-best record in the NBA. The Rockets now have a Top 10 pick in the draft. That certainly puts them in a position to trade this pick if they choose, depending on whichever players may be available around the association to help now in H-Town.
Still, if they make the selection themselves, Woo expects “likely a best-available situation” for the Rockets with Jakucionis being that option with “his playmaking vision, shooting ability and intangibles coupled with excellent positional size for a ball handler.” That has him projected as a lottery option for several teams, including here, to round out the Top 10.
11. Portland Trailblazers: G Egor Demin – BYU Cougars
12. Chicago Bulls: C Derik Queen – Maryland Terrapins
13. Atlanta Hawks (via Sacramento Kings): C Joan Beringer – France
14. San Antonio Spurs (via Atlanta Hawks): F Carter Bryant – Arizona Wildcats
15. Oklahoma City Thunder (via Miami Heat): F Noa Essengue – Germany
16. Orlando Magic: G Jase Richardson – Michigan State Spartans
17. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Detroit Pistons): PF Danny Wolf – Michigan Wolverines
18. Washington Wizards (via Memphis Grizzlies): F Liam McNeeley – Connecticut Huskies
19. Brooklyn Nets (via Milwaukee Bucks): C Thomas Sorber – Georgetown Hoyas
20. Miami Heat (via Golden State Warriors): PG Nolan Traore – France
21. Utah Jazz (via Minnesota Timberwolves): PF Asa Newell – Georgia Bulldogs
22. Atlanta Hawks (via Los Angeles Lakers): F Will Riley – Illinois Fighting Illini
23. Indiana Pacers: SG Nique Clifford – Colorado State Rams
24. Oklahoma City Thunder (via Los Angeles Clippers): C Maxime Raynaud – Stanford Cardinal
25. Orlando Magic (via Denver Nuggets): F Hugo Gonzalez – Spain
26. Brooklyn Nets (via New York Knicks): F Yaxel Lendeborg – UAB Blazers/Michigan Wolverines
27. Brooklyn Nets (via Houston Rockets): F Rasheer Flemming – Saint Joseph’s Hawks
28. Boston Celtics: F Noah Penda – France
29. Phoenix Suns (via Cleveland Cavaliers): G Walter Clayton Jr. – Florida Gators
30. Los Angeles Clippers (via Oklahoma City Thunder): F Cedric Coward – Washington State/Duke
Second Round:
31. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Utah Jazz): F Drake Powell – North Carolina Tar Heels
32. Boston Celtics (via Washington Wizards): G Ben Saraf – Germany
33. Charlotte Hornets: G Labaron Philon – Alabama Crimson Tide
34. Charlotte Hornets (via New Orleans Pelicans): F Adou Thiero – Arkansas Razorbacks
35. Philadelphia 76ers: C Ryan Kalkbrenner – Creighton Bluejays
36. Brooklyn Nets: C Yanic Konan Niederhause – Penn State Nittany Lions
37. Detroit Pistons (via Toronto Raptors): G Tahaad Pettiford – Auburn Tigers
38. San Antonio Spurs: F Alex Condon – Florida Gators
39. Toronto Raptors (via Portland Trailblazers): F Alex Toohey – Australia
40. Washington Wizards (via Phoenix Suns): SG Chaz Lanier – Tennessee Volunteers
41. Golden State Warriors (via Miami Heat): C Hansen Yang – China
42. Sacramento Kings (via Chicago Bulls): F Bogoljub Markovic – Serbia
43. Utah Jazz (via Dallas Mavericks): SG Miles Byrd – San Diego State Aztecs
44. Oklahoma City Thunder (via Atlanta Hawks): F Jamir Watkins – Florida State Seminoles
45. Chicago Bulls (via Sacramento Kings): C Johni Broome – Auburn Tigers
46. Orlando Magic: C Rocco Zikarsky – Australia
47. Milwaukee Bucks (via Detroit Pistons): F Darrion Williams – Texas Tech Red Raiders
48. Memphis Grizzlies (via Golden State Warriors): F John Tonje – Wisconsin Badgers
49. Cleveland Cavaliers (via Milwaukee Bucks): F Michael Ruzic – Croatia
50. New York Knicks (via Memphis Grizzlies): F Eric Dixon – Villanova Wildcats
51. Los Angeles Clippers (via Minnesota Timberwolves): G Tyrese Proctor – Duke Blue Devils
52. Phoenix Suns (via Denver Nuggets): G Sion James – Duke Blue Devils
53. Utah Jazz (via Los Angeles Clippers): G Kam Jones – Marquette Golden Eagles
54. Indiana Pacers: SG Koby Brea – Kentucky Wildcats
55. Los Angeles Lakers: C Vladislav Goldin – Michigan Wolverines
56. Memphis Grizzlies (via Houston Rockets): G Javon Small – West Virginia Mountaineers
57. Orlando Magic (via Boston Celtics): F Neoklis Avdalas – Greece
58. Cleveland Cavaliers: F Mackenzie Mgbako – Indiana/Texas A&M
59. Houston Rockets (via Oklahoma City Thunder): C Viktor Lahkin – Clemson Tigers
