Subscribe
Follow Us
The first round of the 2025 NBA Draft was nothing short of a whirlwind of excitement and movement up and down the board. Cooper Flagg and Dylan Harper kicked things off by being the first two players selected by the Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs, respectively, but what happened inside the top 10 was madness.
Khaman Maluach, the best center prospect entering the draft, was drawing serious interest as high as the Philadelphia 76ers and Charlotte Hornets with the third and fourth picks, respectively. The Duke big man slid all the way to the 10th pick, where he ended up in a great situation with the Phoenix Suns.
However, the Suns then ruined this pick by trading for Mark Williams with the Charlotte Hornets. Williams and Maluach are very similar players, which now creates uncertainty about the rookie's role.
Ace Bailey ended up going fifth to the Utah Jazz, a spot nobody viewed as one of his prime destinations, the Brooklyn Nets didn't make any trades despite heavily being linked to Bailey and other potential moves, and the Portland Trail Blazers made the biggest reach of the draft by taking Hansen Yang at 16th overall.
Now, all 30 teams flip the page to the second round of the draft, where several notable names stand out after falling out of the first round. Maxime Raynaud, Rasheer Fleming, and Ryan Kalkbrenner were all receiving genuine interest from teams in the 20 to 30 region of the draft, yet they did not receive the golden phone call and await to see what the future holds for them on Day 2 of the draft.
Aside from a handful of really talented players being left out on Wednesday night, the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft featured quite a few surprises. Perhaps the two picks that had everyone stunned were a direct result of the trades that happened inside the top 10.
Biggest surprises from 2025 NBA Draft first round
One of the biggest questions everyone was asking right before the draft began was where Derik Queen would ultimately end up. Although he was considered a top-10 talent by many scouts around the league, Queen slipped to the 13th pick. In this spot, the Atlanta Hawks made a trade with the New Orleans Pelicans, who had eyes on Queen with the seventh pick.
Out of every selection, Yang going to Portland by way of Memphis with the 16th pick made everyone double take.
Although he put together great performances at the NBA Draft Combine and was said to have strong pre-draft workouts, Yang is by no means better than other center prospects taken behind him. The bottom line is that if Portland wanted Yang, they didn't have to waste a borderline lottery pick on him.
This selection sent shockwaves through NBA circles, as one executive texted ClutchPoints claiming this was one of the most shocking picks he's seen in recent memory.
“That is the wildest pick I've ever seen,” the source said. “Those jobs up there are on the line.”
Portland taking the Chinese center is certainly a risky move. It will be interesting to see if it pays off for them.
Another shock was seeing Kasparas Jakucionis fall to the 20th selection. The Miami Heat are getting a high-potential guard with strong passing abilities, but Jakucionis was predicted to be a lottery pick. His fall was likely attributed to Jakucionis' lack of scoring and shooting skills, something the Miami Heat will look to polish.
Best prospects remaining entering second round
Article Continues Below
There was much discussion surrounding Maxime Raynaud throughout the pre-draft process. Although several teams, like the Boston Celtics and Atlanta, showed interest in Raynaud during the pre-draft process as a potential first-round pick, he ultimately becomes one of the top players available entering Thursday night's second round.
While he is not the best athlete, Raynaud can be a decent rim protector who will immediately make a team's second-unit offense better. It is quite shocking that so many teams passed on him in favor of other frontcourt players since the Stanford product is a modern-day center who can step out on the perimeter and knock down multiple shots per game.
The Celtics, Charlotte Hornets, and Philadelphia 76ers will be prime destinations for Raynaud since they have clear frontcourt needs.
Other prospects that now find themselves at the top of the draft board before the start of the second round are Adou Thiero, Noah Penda, Ryan Kalkbrenner, and Rasheer Fleming.
Thiero is an intriguing wing with a 7-foot wingspan who made a name for himself at Arkansas for his tough perimeter defense. Teams are always looking for impactful defensive players, especially with Thiero's length, which is why he could wind up being a second-round steal should his 3-point shot come around.
Penda and Fleming are two forwards on the wing who were expected to be first-round picks. The French forward has the length and defensive instincts to be a plug-and-play wing right away in the NBA. If he can develop a consistent jumper, he will end up being a steal. As for Fleming, his 7-foot-5 wingspan was very intriguing to teams.
As a stretch forward, Fleming knocked down nearly 40 percent of his 3-point shots this season at Saint Joseph's.
Kalkbrenner was a fringe first-round pick, but it was a little surprising to see him fall into the second round given his size, shooting abilities, and defensive prowess. The Creighton product was a four-time Big East Defensive Player of the Year, and will immediately be ready to play as a second-round pick with a chip on his shoulder yet again.
Aside from those outlined, here is a full list of the best remaining players available ahead of the second round based on rankings from ClutchPoints 2024 NBA Draft Big Board 5.0:
- Rasheer Fleming – PF (Saint Joseph's, ranked #26)
- Maxime Raynaud – C (Stanford, #28)
- Noah Penda – SF/PF (France, #29)
- Ryan Kalkbrenner – C (Creighton, #31)
- Adou Thiero – SF/PF (Arkansas, #33)
- Chaz Lanier – SG (Tennessee, #34)
- Bogoljub Markovic – PF/C (Serbia, #35)
- Tyrese Proctor – PG (Duke, #36)
- Sion James – SG (Duke, #38)
- Kam Jones – PG/SG (Marquette, #39)
- Alex Toohey – SF (Australia, #40)
- Alijah Martin – SG (Florida, #41)
- Jamir Watkins – SG/SF (Florida State, #42)
- Koby Brea – SG (Kentucky, #43)
- Rocco Zikarsky – C (Australia, #44)
- Johni Broome – PF/C (Auburn, #46)
- Vladislav Goldin – C (Michigan, #47)
- Hunter Sallis – PG/SG (Wake Forest, #48)
- Eric Dixon – PF (Villanova, #49)
- John Tonje – SG/SF (Wisconsin, #50)
- Kobe Sanders – SG (Nevada, #51)
- Javon Small – PG (West Virginia, #52)
- Dink Pate – SG/SF (USA, #53)
- Amari Williams – C (Kentucky, #54)
- RJ Luis Jr. – SG (St. John's, #55)
- Lachlan Olbrich – PF/C (Australia, #56)
- Mark Sears – PG (Alabama, #57)
- Ryan Nembhard – PG (Gonzaga, #58)
- Brice Williams – SG/SF (Nebraska, #59)
- Max Shulga – PG/SG (VCU, #60)
- Chucky Hepburn – PG (Louisville, #61)
- Tamar Bates – SG (Missouri, #62)
- Izan Almansa – PF/C (Spain, #63)
- Grant Nelson – PF (Alabama, #64)
- Payton Sandfort – SF (Iowa, #65)
- Micah Peavy – SG/SF (Georgetown, #66)
- Viktor Lakhin – C (Clemon, #67)
- Caleb Love – PG (Arizona, #68)
- Caleb Grill – SG (Missouri, #69)
- Clifford Omoruyi – C (Alabama, #70)
The second round of the 2025 NBA Draft will take place at 8:00 p.m. Eastern time on Thursday, June 26 in Barclays Center. Deputy NBA commissioner Mark Tatum will take over for NBA commissioner Adam Silver and announce the remaining 29 picks in this year's draft.
