Around the NBA, it’s often said that a draft class can’t be evaluated for at least two years to see who the true winners, losers, breakout stars and disappointments were.
But what would be the fun in that?
As soon as the 2025 draft’s first round wrapped Wednesday night in Brooklyn, New York, NBC News analyzed some of the major storylines to emerge from the first 30 picks.
How will No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg fit in Dallas?
Greif: A player of Flagg’s versatility would fit in anywhere in the NBA, but I’m most interested in how much Dallas coach Jason Kidd allows Flagg to handle the ball and initiate the Mavericks’ offense given Kyrie Irving is expected to miss all of next season after injuring a knee ligament.
The Mavericks should have enough salary flexibility this offseason to bring in a point guard (Chris Paul, anyone?) but with Dallas in win-now mode, it would seem to benefit their future to get Flagg a lot of reps as early as possible as a playmaker, just as they did with Luka Doncic in 2018. As someone who watched Flagg play comfortably against established NBA stars when he was only 17 years old, during a scrimmage against the U.S. national team in 2024, I don’t have many doubts he will enter the league with a feel for how to handle NBA defenses.
Nadkarni: Flagg should be a great fit with the Mavericks, especially because he will be entering a lower pressure situation than most top draft picks. I’m especially curious to see how he fits in on the defensive side of the ball.
Orlando Magic coach Jamahl Mosley, who coached Flagg on the USA Select Team ahead of the Olympics last year, praised Flagg for his attention to detail on that end of the floor after their time together. Flagg could end up being a nice defensive piece on the wing for a roster that already includes Anthony Davis and an emerging rim protector in Dereck Lively III.
Favorite pick
Nadkarni: Ace Bailey was something of a lightning rod entering Wednesday, but he seems like a smart gamble for the Jazz. Utah is in the unenviable position of not being a top target for free agents. The Jazz don’t get many opportunities to acquire a player of Bailey’s talent. And after Utah’s pick fell out of the top four, grabbing a player who many expected to be in the top three feels like a home run.
Could Bailey grumble at first? Sure. Still, he’ll be cost-controlled for four years, and the Jazz will have an opportunity to put a competitive roster around him in the meantime. Though they aren’t quite the same player, remember that this is the same franchise that was once lifted by a young Donovan Mitchell. Bailey should receive a similar opportunity to make his own mark in the backcourt.
Greif: VJ Edgecombe to Philadelphia at No. 3. There was more speculation about whether the Sixers would use or trade their pick, given they are coming off a nightmare season that saw a preseason title contender stumble to 24 wins after an injury to former MVP Joel Embiid and a disappointing first season for splashy free-agent signing Paul George. Holding onto it to select Edgecombe feels like the right move to fit both timelines the team is considering.
He’s a player who makes the team better right now, if Philadelphia is still pursuing a championship — on a team of older, injury-prone stars, his athleticism is badly needed — and he certainly is a building block for the future, in case the franchise is considering a pivot toward the future. Edgecombe playing with electric young guard Tyrese Maxey is something I’ll be watching on League Pass often.
Most surprising pick
Greif: There were a couple of strong passers who made surprising leaps up the draft board. The first was BYU’s Egor Demin, who went eighth overall to Brooklyn, around 20 picks higher than many mock drafts expected. But the biggest jump was Yang Hansen of China, who went from being projected to be taken in the middle of Thursday’s second round to 16th overall, in a trade that lands him in Portland.
No one seemed to have seen that rise coming, but the 7-foot-1 big man’s touch and creative flair as a passer has earned him comparisons to Nikola Jokic. (I’ll admit, the footage of his passes immediately brought to mind visions of Arvydas Sabonis deftly finding open Trail Blazers teammates in the 1990s.)
Let’s pump the brakes a tad; Jokic is the best-passing big man of all-time, and among the best passers ever regardless of position. Yet considering Hansen averaged 15 points, 11 rebounds and four assists playing in China’s top professional division two years ago while still a teenager, I’m intrigued by whether he can hang in the NBA.
Nadkarni: Khaman Maluach was a no-brainer pick for the Suns at No. 10. (The Rockets technically made the selection but it will go to Phoenix as part of the Kevin Durant trade.) Except, within minutes of selecting Maluach, the Suns traded two first-round picks for Hornets center Mark Williams. Huh?
Williams and Maluach are not the kind of big men who can play alongside one another. I understand Phoenix was desperate in the frontcourt. But a pick-strapped team using three first-round picks on two centers is baffling. Maluach would have been a home run had the Suns simply not also traded for Williams. Maybe things will all shake out in the future (Williams could be a trade chip again.) For now, though, drafting Maluach and trading multiple picks for another center doesn’t seem like the most efficient use of resources.
Team that won (or lost) the night
Nadkarni: It may be time to nationalize the New Orleans Pelicans. Seriously, what are they doing?
New Orleans already made somewhat of a strange move this summer, trading C.J. McCollum’s expiring contract for two years of Jordan Poole. Sure, whatever.
The real head-scratcher came Wednesday night when New Orleans traded up from No. 23 to No. 13 with the Atlanta Hawks to take Maryland big man Derik Queen — and gave up a 2026 unprotected first-round pick in the process. Unprotected! A pick that’s going to be the worst between the Pelicans and the Milwaukee Bucks, both teams that are expected to be very bad next year.
There is actually a decent chance New Orleans just traded a potential top-five pick for a late lottery selection. For a team that’s rebuilding, I’m struggling to figure out how this makes sense.
Greif: Rohan, I second your confusion over what is happening in New Orleans. You covered that ground so thoroughly, I’ll focus on the positive. I’m cheating a bit but I have two teams that won the night, and both because of the guards they selected.
Let’s start with Washington’s selection of Tre Johnson at No. 6. In the past week the Wizards have shipped out Jordan Poole, a guard who seemed too untrustworthy to be part of any long-term rebuild, and brought back consummate veteran scorer CJ McCollum from New Orleans in exchange. The Wizards need grown-ups in the room and McCollum, a former union president, gives them that. He’ll be there to help mentor Johnson, who came out of Texas as one of the best pure scorers available.
By selecting Ace Bailey and Walter Clayton Jr., Utah has also seemingly chosen a clear direction after spending the past several years wandering through the NBA wilderness in order to earn high draft picks. Bailey has enormous potential, if he can learn to accept playing in Utah, which reportedly was not among his preferred destinations. Clayton Jr. is a winner and watching him guide Florida to multiple comebacks en route to winning the NCAA championship makes me think he’ll bring a level of instant competence to the point guard position.
