2025 NBA Draft (2)

[Iverson Armband]

Just some food for thought as it involves Tre. Think he's getting a bit overrated on offense and getting a few passes for some really concerning on court issues.

https://www.phillyvoice.com/sixers-news-analysis-2025-nba-mock-draft-rumors-tre-johnson-statsdrake-powell-dylan-harper-ace-bailey-cooper-flagg-highlights/

Aronson takes Tre at 3 for the Sixers quoting the "scout Jama" stating Tre had the most impressive jump shooting seasons in stat recorded history since 2010. Aronson goes on to highlight Tre's just under 40% from 3 on "massive" shot diet per 100 and "tough shots."

McCain just last year took the same amount of 3's and same shot diet as Tre and shot 2-3% better from 3 and his midrange jump shot was about 8% better than Tre's. So that scout's argument about greatest jump shooting season is a lot of hyperbole. BTW, man are we lucky to have gotten Jared.

Example 2: RTRS

[url]

Watch on YouTube

;t=4447s[/url] listen to the 1:14:00 marker.

Their guest goes on to talk about how he taped Tre during the SEC conference tournament to check his body language and said the following:

"Claps for ball a lot" - - "he'd slump" if the ball swung to the other side - - "threw his arms up" when he didn't get ball causing assistant coach to "plead with him" - - The conclusion was "clearly Texas was messed up" and Tre's 1 mature interview fixed that enormous red flag.

I'm dumbfounded that Mike, but especially, Spike let 1 good interview wash away this concern. This is exactly the same as how Joel Embiid acts on the Court which drives Spike insane. Joel doesn't get the ball how/when he wants, he sulks and pouts and then gives less effort on defense. Gee, does that sound familiar? That's exactly what we saw out of Tre, sulks and pouts and then didn't try on defense. And he wasn't listening to coaching about it either. I wouldn't trust 1 interview where his agent clearly had him prepared to handle specific questions. I don't know why this hasn't been raised as a bigger red flag given what we've gone through with Joel.

Enormous red flag? Dude, it is not that deep. Joel was a grown ass man in the NBA. I’m not even making excuses for Tre, but you can’t compare that to an 18 year old college kid who’s frustrated and knows he’s by far the best player on the team. Most of these kids coming in need to grow up in one way or another, I guess you wouldn’t draft half the NBA? It’s cool if you don’t like Tre as a prospect, but there’s no need to manufacture drama around him because he’s gaining popularity to be drafted by the Sixers.

[Stanford]

I wouldn't be that upset if we drafted another Joel Embiid, if that's what Tre turns out to be.

[zaz102]

Is it fair to say that Tre Johnson has the best shooting, self creation, ballhandling, and playmaking of Ace, VJ, and Tre?

No.

Best 3pt shooting - but Ace is better midrange, tough shots and at the rim (albeit neither made it there often). I don't know how you define "play making," but I might give that to VJ who was a more willing and better connective passer which is a form of creation.

For shooting, I think its fair to say they're equal depending on what you value.

I don't really see how Ace was better at getting to the rim. He seems equal to Tre there. I agree that even though Tre has a good midrange game, Ace is elite which they compare oppsitely at three point shooting. And Tre was the better free throw shooter.


For playmaking, I mean the ability to create scoring opportunities for teammates not just assists. I know VJ can be a good connective passer, but I haven't seen videos of him using vision or making creative passes like the video of Tre below. If you are aware of any, can you post them?

https://xcancel.com/DraftDevotee/status/1923945150277091510#m

[Stanford]

I heard another podcast say Tre is a "Jimmy Butler level psychopath."

[youngcrev]

Is there anyone projected to go into the mid-to-late teens that you'd be willing to give up the LAC pick for?

I get that pick has mythical level value around here, but realistically, let's say the Spurs or Thunder are willing to swap their pick (14 or 15) for a high variance future pick.

Would you? Who you taking? CMB? Sorbet? What if a guy like Queen or Kasparas falls there?

[Kobblehead]

Lord knows we don't need any more munchkins, but I just feel like Ryan Nembhard is such an elite playmaker that all our shooters would shoot anywhere from 1-3% higher if we had him.

[Kobblehead]

Is there anyone projected to go into the mid-to-late teens that you'd be willing to give up the LAC pick for?

I get that pick has mythical level value around here, but realistically, let's say the Spurs or Thunder are willing to swap their pick (14 or 15) for a high variance future pick.

Would you? Who you taking? CMB? Sorbet? What if a guy like Queen or Kasparas falls there?

I would definitely be interested in something like that.

Carter Bryant would be near the top of my list. He projects very comfortably into being an Anunoby/Eason type in a playoff rotation.

[Kobblehead]

His name is Airious, why tf is his nickname Ace and not Air?

Air Bailey is way more cool-sounding and appropo for an atheletic high flyer.

[Jailblazers7]

I heard another podcast say Tre is a "Jimmy Butler level psychopath."

That can be read as both a positive and a negative lol

[youngcrev]

Out of boredom I've added some guys to my watch list that will neither be considered in the top 10 but have no chance to be there at 35.

Any big Danny Wolf guys in here? I feel like Queen has gotten talked up as a potential Sengun/Sabonis/Jokic hub, but this guy is a legit 7 footer in shoes and straight up plays like a PG (albeit an extremely slow one!). Kinda reminds of Hedo, except bigger. He actually tested pretty well for a guy his size in the agility and shuttle, but I'm not sure I trust that.

On the flip side, while he seems like he's got good touch, those shooting percentages are underwhelming from 3 and straight up bad from the FT line. And I'm not sure what position he is defending at a decent level.

Could see him becoming a legit good player with that skill set at his size. Could also see him being completely unplayable.

[SixthStreet]

Wolf is like a bigger Kyle Anderson. Like him a lot as a player and I’m sure he’s going to carve out a 10 year career in the league, but with like 8 teams. I wouldn’t draft him.

[Arsenal]

Out of boredom I've added some guys to my watch list that will neither be considered in the top 10 but have no chance to be there at 35.

Any big Danny Wolf guys in here? I feel like Queen has gotten talked up as a potential Sengun/Sabonis/Jokic hub, but this guy is a legit 7 footer in shoes and straight up plays like a PG (albeit an extremely slow one!). Kinda reminds of Hedo, except bigger. He actually tested pretty well for a guy his size in the agility and shuttle, but I'm not sure I trust that.

On the flip side, while he seems like he's got good touch, those shooting percentages are underwhelming from 3 and straight up bad from the FT line. And I'm not sure what position he is defending at a decent level.

Could see him becoming a legit good player with that skill set at his size. Could also see him being completely unplayable.

It's all about the shooting with Wolf. If he can just be an adequate shooter instead of really bad, he could be a valuable contributor.

He had a 55.9% TS this season while shooting 59.4% from the FT line. If he just got the FT% up to 70-75% his overall efficiency would approach 60%.

[Black Mage]

Is there anyone projected to go into the mid-to-late teens that you'd be willing to give up the LAC pick for?

I get that pick has mythical level value around here, but realistically, let's say the Spurs or Thunder are willing to swap their pick (14 or 15) for a high variance future pick.

Would you? Who you taking? CMB? Sorbet? What if a guy like Queen or Kasparas falls there?

I would definitely be interested in something like that.

Carter Bryant would be near the top of my list. He projects very comfortably into being an Anunoby/Eason type in a playoff rotation.

I'd add Coward (freakish measurements and flashes of shooting), Fleming (high motor defender/rebounder who shot well his last yr but is a question mark there), Clifford (tough defender with some offensive tools) to that list and probably in that order.

[Black Mage]

His name is Airious, why tf is his nickname Ace and not Air?

Air Bailey is way more cool-sounding and appropo for an atheletic high flyer.

MJ and Nike would have sued the pants off him

[youngcrev]

Wolf is like a bigger Kyle Anderson. Like him a lot as a player and I’m sure he’s going to carve out a 10 year career in the league, but with like 8 teams. I wouldn’t draft him.

Offensively you mean? Because while Anderson is slow, he leverages that wingspan of his into being a pretty damn good defender.

But yeah. That's fair

[Kobblehead]

How much more usage does Tre need or want? He was already at 29% at Texas which is huge. Even Kevin Durant was only 33% usage. He isn't going to get close to that usage on the Sixers. I have a hard time gambling with a guy who checks out if things don't go his way on offense. Joel's kinda burnt me out on that.

I honestly don't think usage was the source of his frustration.

Many people don't realize that Tre Johnson was actually their SF. Their backcourt was comprised of Jordan Pope (12.9% assist) and Tramon Mark (11.7% assist).

Texas ranked 231st in assists and had a starting backcourt that had no interest in making plays for anyone other than themselves. That's obviosuly not going to happen in the NBA where 95% of starting Gs have a 20% or higher assist percentage.

[Black Mage]

Spoiler:

Just some food for thought as it involves Tre. Think he's getting a bit overrated on offense and getting a few passes for some really concerning on court issues.

https://www.phillyvoice.com/sixers-news-analysis-2025-nba-mock-draft-rumors-tre-johnson-statsdrake-powell-dylan-harper-ace-bailey-cooper-flagg-highlights/

Aronson takes Tre at 3 for the Sixers quoting the "scout Jama" stating Tre had the most impressive jump shooting seasons in stat recorded history since 2010. Aronson goes on to highlight Tre's just under 40% from 3 on "massive" shot diet per 100 and "tough shots."

McCain just last year took the same amount of 3's and same shot diet as Tre and shot 2-3% better from 3 and his midrange jump shot was about 8% better than Tre's. So that scout's argument about greatest jump shooting season is a lot of hyperbole. BTW, man are we lucky to have gotten Jared.

Example 2: RTRS

[url]

Watch on YouTube

;t=4447s[/url] listen to the 1:14:00 marker.

Their guest goes on to talk about how he taped Tre during the SEC conference tournament to check his body language and said the following:

"Claps for ball a lot" - - "he'd slump" if the ball swung to the other side - - "threw his arms up" when he didn't get ball causing assistant coach to "plead with him" - - The conclusion was "clearly Texas was messed up" and Tre's 1 mature interview fixed that enormous red flag.

I'm dumbfounded that Mike, but especially, Spike let 1 good interview wash away this concern. This is exactly the same as how Joel Embiid acts on the Court which drives Spike insane. Joel doesn't get the ball how/when he wants, he sulks and pouts and then gives less effort on defense. Gee, does that sound familiar? That's exactly what we saw out of Tre, sulks and pouts and then didn't try on defense. And he wasn't listening to coaching about it either. I wouldn't trust 1 interview where his agent clearly had him prepared to handle specific questions. I don't know why this hasn't been raised as a bigger red flag given what we've gone through with Joel.

Enormous red flag? Dude, it is not that deep. Joel was a grown ass man in the NBA. I’m not even making excuses for Tre, but you can’t compare that to an 18 year old college kid who’s frustrated and knows he’s by far the best player on the team. Most of these kids coming in need to grow up in one way or another, I guess you wouldn’t draft half the NBA? It’s cool if you don’t like Tre as a prospect, but there’s no need to manufacture drama around him because he’s gaining popularity to be drafted by the Sixers.

I'm not manufacturing anything, Tre put it all on tape out in the open. People on these boards freaked out over one interview by Bailey; but you're telling me I'm manufacturing drama when a player displays bad attitude and body language in the middle of games? Including the play-in game where he cost his team a 4 pt lead? We haven't see enough of Joel doing that and hurting the Sixers to hit the pause button on Tre?

For those who relied on Barlowe, he excuses it as people "mistaking" the body language as just Tre's "passion" for the game. BULL. If Tre had passion for the game he'd hustle back on defense and try to make something happen there. We all know that never happened. That's also where all this Jimmy stuff is a joke to me. Jimmy was a psycho on BOTH ends of the floor in his workouts which carried over into games. Tre is as one-sided as it gets, he might work excessively on offense, but he doesn't appear to put in any work on his defense.

Let's ask this, are there any reports of bad attitude or body language out of Ace? He was on a worse team with even worse coaching and also in a tough conference. Did Ace let his heavy usage deter him from effort on defense? Did Ace stop trying on defense b/c he was still moping about something that happened on the offensive end?

Lastly, I was one of the first on the Tre wagon back in our old should the sixers tank threads in November of last year. I was very pro-Tre at that time, but the more I watch the more I've moved off him. Tre's still in my Top 3; b/c I do believe there is a slight chance he hits Steph Curry levels of elite offensive jump shooting which breaks defenses. My point is in the media he's getting hyped a bit too much for his offense and getting free passes on some real red flags all because he gave one well prepared for interview.

[mjkvol]

The author positions VJ as a “utility guard” (think Josh Hart or Gary Payton II) but with a better jumper. He rebounds like a big, defends like a wing, and has the athletic tools to fill a role that flexes between perimeter and frontcourt responsibilities. You can use him as a spacer, a screener, or someone who attacks mismatches. In that context, his weaknesses are manageable.

He’s not going to be a lead initiator or high-volume creator, and trying to make him that (as Baylor did) actually lowers his value. But in a secondary or tertiary role, with NBA spacing and simplified reads, he could thrive. He’s the type of guy who helps you build flexible lineups without sacrificing spacing, defense, or physicality.

So they dont see him to be a lead guard or primary creator. But he’s also not just a glue guy. And there’s real upside here if you use him the right way.

This is how I see VJ as well, and it profiles the kind of player that contending teams always seem to have on their roster. His offensive game is far better than Payton or Hart, and you'll be able to plug him into virtually any type of lineup or system.

Is a guy like that worth the #3 pick - that is the question. If the Sixers were planning on being contenders in 2025 or even 2026, I'd say absolutely, but with needing to clear so much aging dreck out of here over the next couple of years, we're looking at 2027 or later before getting back to that status. And that's if the right moves are made and the win-now mentality is a thing of the past.

[zaz102]

It definitely seems like VJ sticks out from Ace and Tre in the attitude category, but we've seen a lot of all stars give dumb interviews (e.g. LeBron) or have bad body language (e.g. LeBron) and it not seem to matter too much to winning or how their teammates feel about them.

It makes sense to take it into account though and hopefully scouts get a better feel for that. Kyle and Derek said they've talked to a bunch of people and haven't heard anything bad about any of the prospects so hopefully that's a good sign for Ace and Tre.

[mjkvol]

Is there anyone projected to go into the mid-to-late teens that you'd be willing to give up the LAC pick for?

I get that pick has mythical level value around here, but realistically, let's say the Spurs or Thunder are willing to swap their pick (14 or 15) for a high variance future pick.

Would you? Who you taking? CMB? Sorbet? What if a guy like Queen or Kasparas falls there?

Absolutely. This draft is deep enough that one or more of the projected lottery picks are likely to drop as late risers like Essengue or another international player get drafted higher than their projections. And the bonus would be that it is no longer there as a temptation to use in a win-now trade.