After taking the college basketball world by storm during the NCAA tournament, Florida Gators point guard Walter Clayton Jr’s draft stock has skyrocketed.
Back in January, Florida’s floor general was expected to be a second-round pick. Now, mock drafts from ESPN, CBS Sports and Bleacher Report all project that Clayton Jr. will be selected in the first round.
While leading Florida to their third national championship, Clayton Jr. picked earned First-Team All American honors and was named Most Outstanding Player (MOP) of the NCAA tournament.
On the “To The Baha” podcast, former NBA veterans Raymond Felton, Theo Pinson and Justin Jackson spoke highly of Clayton Jr., stating he should be a top-five pick in the upcoming NBA Draft.
NBA Vets from the “To The Baha” podcast talking bout Walter Clayton Jr 🐊🫡 pic.twitter.com/XrzIZcJmH1
— JD (@Smooth189) May 7, 2025
“This guy, I don’t care (about) his age. I don’t care what school he went to. I don’t give a damn about what stars he had… he is a top five pick,” Pinson said.
Felton, himself a former national champion and top-five pick, compared Clayton Jr.’s dominant tournament run to none other than Dwyane Wade’s. During his final season at Marquette, the NBA Hall of Famer led the Golden Eagles to their first Final Four and was named an AP First-Team All-American.
“I don’t want to put him on this pedestal so high like this ’cause this guy I’m about to name is a hall of famer. Is he Dwayne Wade? A guy that killed in the Final Four. What he did to the best team in college basketball this year is sick work,” Felton said.
Last season, Clayton Jr. averaged 18.3 points and 4.2 assists per game, leading the Gators in each category. Throughout the NCAA tournament, he averaged 22.3 points and 3.3 assists.
His top showing in the tournament came during the Final Four against Auburn. The Lake Wales native scoring 34 points while knocking down five three-pointers.
“It wasn’t even close,” Felton added of Clayton Jr.’s performance against the Tigers. “He killed everybody who tried to guard him.”
Before transferring to Florida, he spent two seasons at Iona University, where he was named the MAAC Conference Player of the Year after averaging 16.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.
Earlier in the week, Clayton Jr and fellow Gators Alex Condon and Alijah Martin were invited to the NBA Draft Combine.
The NBA Draft lottery will take place on Monday, May 12 with the draft taking place on Wednesday, June 25.
