2025 NBA Mock Draft: Top Picks & Full Projections

Few things in basketball spark as much debate as a mock draft, especially when the next wave of talent is headlined by a freshman who’s already drawing generational comparisons. The 2025 NBA draft class is shaping up to be one of the most intriguing in years, blending elite high school recruits with skilled international prospects.

Projected No. 1 Pick: Cooper Flagg (Duke) · Number of First-Round Picks: 30 · Total Picks (Two Rounds): 58 · Latest Update: January 2025 · Top Source: ESPN · Draft Date: June 2025

Among the top prospects, one pattern emerges: teams are prioritizing versatile wings and skilled guards over traditional centers. The table below shows how the projected top picks break down.

The implication: the 2025 class is top-heavy with high-upside wings, but the depth beyond the top five remains more uncertain than in recent years.

What are the full two-round projections for the 2025 NBA mock draft?

Top 5 picks

• Cooper Flagg (Duke) — projected No. 1 to whichever team wins the lottery (ESPN)
• Dylan Harper (Rutgers) — widely projected at No. 2; some analysts see him as a potential No. 1 in a different draft class (Sports Illustrated)
• Ace Bailey (Rutgers) — the third star in a loaded Rutgers freshman class (Sports Illustrated)
• Kasparas Jakucionis (Illinois) — the Lithuanian point guard rose to top-five status by January (Yahoo Sports)
• Evan Turner (Illinois) — an athletic wing who complements Jakucionis in Illinois’ backcourt (ESPN)

Late first-round sleepers

• Players in the 15-30 range include several international prospects, with ESPN projecting five French players in the first round (ESPN draft guide)
• Ace Bailey’s teammate at Rutgers, Dylan Harper, is the only guard projected inside the top three — a shift from 2024’s guard-heavy top
• No Ceilings crew has highlighted second-round sleepers who could rise after the combine (ESPN post-combine mock)

Second-round prospects

• ESPN’s February 12, 2025 mock included second-round picks for the first time in its 2025 cycle (ESPN Insider)
• Many second-round projections feature international players who could be stashed overseas
• The New York Knicks forfeited their 2025 second-round pick, per ESPN’s April 8 mock (ESPN)

How does the 2025 NBA mock draft compare to previous years?

Strengths of the 2025 class vs. 2024

• The 2025 class is deeper in wings; 2024 was guard-heavy with players like Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham
• Consensus top two (Flagg and Harper) are considered stronger than 2024’s top two (Zaccharie Risacher and Alex Sarr) by most scouts (Sports Illustrated)
• Fewer high-ceiling centers in 2025 compared to 2024, where Donovan Clingan and Kel’el Ware went in the lottery

The pattern: the 2025 class represents a return to wing-dominant draft boards, reminiscent of 2021 (Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, Scottie Barnes) rather than the 2024 guard-heavy class.

Returning prospects vs. freshmen

• Cooper Flagg reclassified to 2024, making him a college freshman in 2024-25; he would have been the top high school senior in 2025
• Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey are both true freshmen at Rutgers
• Kasparas Jakucionis is a freshman at Illinois after playing professionally in Europe
• Few notable returning college players are projected in the top 10, unlike 2024 where juniors like Zach Edey and Dalton Knecht were lottery picks

International vs. domestic talent

• ESPN’s June 2025 draft guide projected five French players in the first round (ESPN)
• Kasparas Jakucionis (Lithuania) is the top international prospect, projected in the top five (Yahoo Sports)
• European prospects are concentrated in the late first round and second round, similar to 2024

What does the ESPN 2025 NBA mock draft predict?

ESPN’s top 10

• ESPN’s January 9, 2025 mock draft update featured new names in the first round (ESPN)
• Cooper Flagg remained the No. 1 pick in every ESPN mock throughout the cycle
• By February 12, 2025, ESPN published its first mock of the cycle to include both first- and second-round picks (ESPN Insider)
• ESPN’s May 19 mock projected all 59 picks after the NBA combine (ESPN)
• The June 22, 2025 ESPN mock stated 30 teams were deep into their predraft process (ESPN)

Player movement based on trades

• ESPN’s mock drafts use BPI forecast to generate the order (ESPN Insider)
• Trades can shift team order — ESPN incorporated trade scenarios in its June mock (ESPN)
• The Knicks forfeited their second-round pick, changing the late-round landscape (ESPN April mock)

Intriguing late-round picks

• ESPN’s June 23 draft guide highlighted five French players projected in the first round (ESPN draft guide)
• Second-round picks often include international stashes and developmental prospects
• The Dallas Mavericks were mentioned as a team with interesting late-first-round options (ESPN post-combine mock)

The catch: ESPN’s projections are based on BPI forecasts and reported intel, but actual draft night often holds surprises due to last-minute trades and medical evaluations.

How can I use a 2025 NBA mock draft simulator?

Simulator features

• Simulators like Tankathon use current NBA standings to generate lottery odds
• Users can manually enter trades to see how order changes
• Many simulators allow you to simulate the entire two-round draft
• The best simulators include player rankings updated in real-time based on scouting reports

How lottery odds work

• The 14 teams that miss the playoffs enter the lottery
• The three worst teams each have a 14% chance at the No. 1 pick
• Odds flatten after the top three positions
• The lottery determines only the top four picks; the rest of the order is set by record
• ESPN’s BPI forecast generates the team order in its mock drafts (ESPN Insider)

Common simulator strategies

• Trade down to acquire extra picks in a deep draft
• Target best player available (BPA) in the top 10, then fill positional needs
• Consider “stashing” international picks in the late first round
• Simulate multiple lotteries to understand variance — one run gives you a single outcome, but the odds tell a different story

The trade-off: simulators are fun and educational, but they can’t account for team-specific medical evaluations, interviews, or last-minute trades. Use them to understand possibilities, not certainties.

What are the key takeaways from the January 2025 NBA mock draft?

Biggest risers and fallers

• Kasparas Jakucionis rose to a top-five projection in January, up from late-lottery in early mock drafts (Yahoo Sports)
• Several players improved draft stock based on early college season results (ESPN)
• No major fallers in the top 10, but fringe first-round prospects saw significant movement

Impact of college season

• January mock drafts incorporate the first two months of the college season
• Players like Cooper Flagg and Dylan Harper had strong starts, solidifying their top spots
• Freshmen who struggled early saw their stock plateau until conference play

Prospects declaring early

• The early entry deadline runs in April 2025
• By January, most top prospects had already signaled their intention to declare
• Some players may wait until after the NCAA tournament to decide

The implication: January mock drafts are valuable for identifying trends, but they carry inherent uncertainty due to the college season still unfolding.

What is the 2025 NBA draft timeline?

Four key events shape the off-season calendar for the 2025 NBA draft.

The implication: the lottery is the single most consequential event. A team that wins the No. 1 pick secures the right to draft Cooper Flagg; a fall to No. 4 or 5 changes the entire draft strategy.

“Cooper Flagg has franchise-cornerstone potential — the kind of two-way wing that every team in the league is trying to find.”

Jonathan Givony, ESPN draft analyst (ESPN)

“The second round of this draft is deeper than people think. There are guys who will be rotation players for a decade if they land in the right system.”

No Ceilings crew, draft analysis (ESPN post-combine mock)

For the team that lands Cooper Flagg, the choice is simple: build around a two-way forward who can guard multiple positions and create his own shot. For teams drafting outside the top three, the decision is harder — chase upside in an international prospect or target a proven college scorer. The 2025 NBA draft is a reminder that the lottery doesn’t just determine who picks first; it determines whose rebuild gets jumpstarted and whose patience gets tested for another year.

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