One Kentucky player from Mark Pope‘s first roster continues to trend as a possible 2025 NBA Draft pick.
Following the conclusion of the NCAA Tournament, ESPN draft experts Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo wasted no time busting out an updated mock draft. The duo unveiled their latest projections for June’s draft on Tuesday morning, which included Kentucky guard Koby Brea as the 54th overall pick to the Indiana Pacers.
With only 59 picks in this year’s draft, Brea, 22, just barely made the cut, but he’s been on the rise the last few months as a possible selection come draft night. Last month’s mock from ESPN had the 6-foot-7 fifth-year senior slotted at 58th.
Brea developed more throughout his lone season at Kentucky under Pope than arguably anyone else on the roster. The sharpshooting guard finished second on the team in scoring at 11.6 points per outing while shooting an SEC-leading 43.5 percent from deep. Over the final 17 games (15 as a starter) of the season, Brea made his best pitch as a future pro. During that time, the New York native averaged 12.6 points, 3.3 rebounds, and two assists in 33.2 minutes per outing on shooting splits of 46.9/40.2/92.
Coming into the 2024-25 season, Brea was widely known as a shooter. But as the year went along, he morphed into a steady playmaker and reliable defender. As injuries ran through Kentucky’s roster, Brea always suited up and took on more ball-handling responsibilities than at any point in his college career. Being forced into a different role might have actually helped his draft stock.
The 2025 NBA Draft is scheduled for June 25-26 in Brooklyn, NY.
