2025 NBA Draft Thread, part 1 – Capture the Flagg

[165bows]

Zuby Ejiofor, if he declares for the draft, will likely go undrafted, but I see NBA potential in him. While undersized for a center, he possesses great hands, works tirelessly in the paint, and is surprisingly quick, allowing him to defend guards and perimeter players effectively.

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Cool thanks. Never heard of him but I like that mold of player and his team is doing well.

[threrf23]

One name I'll throw out there. Chaz Lanier.

-Can shoot the lights out
-Older guy, will be 23 on draft night; Same age as both out draftees (Watson, Scheierman) were last year
-Probably the best player on a top 10 team in college basketball
-For a guy who is mostly just a shooter, he can put the ball on the floor a little bit, has decent quickness/athleticism
-Defense is ok. Not bad, but not great. Everyone has to defend if they play for Rick Barnes - the last 2 guys the celtics had who played for Rick Barnes - Grant Williams and Jaden Springer..guys who play for him play D and they're tough
-Measured 6'4.75" in shoes last year, with 6'9" wingspan..not great size, but he's like a Gary Trent Jr type..w/ some Malik Beasley/Lonnie Walker mixed in
-Older guy, plug and play
-Seems to have a quicker release on his shot..so I'm thinking he'll be more likely to have a smooth transition to the NBA shooting-wise than Scheierman, who often needs more time/space to square himself up and launch the ball

Lanier is a volume shooter. We won't need to tell him "hey man, we want you to work on your shooting, we want you to feel like you have the green light to let it fly" like we said to Walsh, Tillman and Watson. Similar to Scheirman, Lanier would be coming in from Day 1, already having that "green light to shoot" mentality

The other difference with Lanier vs Scheirman - Lanier seems to be a bit stronger, more athletic, quicker and better defender..not as good a passer, though..but you can't have everything picking this late in the draft

I wouldn't hate it if we took Lanier in the 2nd round.

1st round, I might take him late 1st, but that might be a reach..

If we took Lanier and he "hits". A bench unit with Pritchard, Lanier and Hauser could be lethal. Both teams would have their bench units in and we'd crush opponents by raining 3's on them.

Chaz Lanier looks really underrated to me.

He doesn't project to become the shooter that Hauser is, nor the shooter that Pritch is for that matter per se. Just looks like a high intangibles/IQ guy with a balanced game and no real red flags. Maybe a smaller Mikal Bridges, or somethin.

Saearched the thread and found this post.

ETA still looking thru names etc, but at quick glance Michael Ruzic & Joe Charles stick out as other mostly unmentioned names that look potentially underrated. Ruzic in particular is one of the youngest players in the draft, posted passable numbers in Europe as a 17 y/o, and lacks red flags if I trust his nbascoutinglive capsule. Joe Charles more just looks like a viable 3&D guy, statistically if not actually.

EDIT - I have to revise my take after realizing that Chaz Lanier played his first four seasons at North Florida, against lower conference competition, I glanced over that and assumed UCF. His inability to demand big minutes and pull down more rebounds playing on a mediocre Div 1A team as an underclassman, probably speaks to a lowish ceiling, at best

[threrf23]

I'm actually now not so sure re: Lanier, edited my post above to reflect that.

This is a good piece on Ruzic.

[phincsfan]

I’d be shocked if Clifford is there at 28

[165bows]

I’d be shocked if Clifford is there at 28

Starting to look that way.

[phincsfan]

This is the time of year that upperclassmen have one last chance to shine.

Broome, Clifford, Jones, Small, Nelson, Sears, Brea, Robinson, Clayton Jr

[winsomme2]

I watched some of the FLA/ALA game to see how Condon and Haugh looked. They both are definitely interesting prospects but the player that actually was jumping off the screen was Grant Nelson. Was bummed that he went down with an injiury because I would like to see more of him. Hopefully he can come back for the Tourney.

Anybody have a scouting report on Grant Nelson? Seems like an active and skilled big who plays strong at both ends of the floor.

[threrf23]

I watched some of the FLA/ALA game to see how Condon and Haugh looked. They both are definitely interesting prospects but the player that actually was jumping off the screen was Grant Nelson. Was bummed that he went down with an injiury because I would like to see more of him. Hopefully he can come back for the Tourney.

Anybody have a scouting report on Grant Nelson? Seems like an active and skilled big who plays strong at both ends of the floor.

It looks like several people have asked the same on Reddit.

He is clearly active, and looks the part. But he is also a five year senior and probably not as skilled as he looks. He is a bit foul prone, statistically a poor outside shooter (under 30% three seasons straight even as a long guy getting open looks), A/TO doesn't suggest he is anything special as a ballhandler or passer.

The things he does do well won't translate as easily in the NBA, although I suppose he could carve out a role for himself if he can improve on his three ball.

[phincsfan]

If the C's stick with the double big for the 25/26 season how will it look?

AL is a FA
Luke is FA (Can he get a Jalen Smith type deal 3yrs/27mil?) Maybe a S&T candidate?
Tillman has been non-existent

That leaves Neems on the island

Because of payroll and taxes is it worth it to stick with Luke at that potential cost or start the youth movement at C in the draft?

Keep the 1st if Wolf is still available? I wrote about him months ago and I still like his game. He may be flying up the board though. Back then some Michigan writer had him as a 1st round talent when he wasn't even in 2nd rd mocks. I rewatched the Yale tourney games and saw what he was talking about. He's on the big stage and playing in a double big line-up already. IMO, NBA teams see that and may scoop him up.

I want nothing to do with Kalkenbrenner. He has shoes filled with cement.

Raynaud who was mentioned before is interesting.

[165bows]

https://edemirnba.substack.com/p/maxime-raynaud-scouting-report

Saw this last night, just hadn't got to post it yet lol.

On a more serious note I am all for grabbing a lotto talent big man at 28, especially one that fits the team's play style. Curious the defensive part of that write-up behind the pay wall. Also for a guy that is a senior big man that he says is a potential lotto talent, why is his shooting efficiency so low? For a guy like that to have an EFG/TS% of .529/.561 is concerning to me. I get that he is not going to be asked to shoot/score as much in the pros but still.

He has a ton of offensive responsabilities in his first season as the true number one option on his team. I think some growing pains can be expected. I understand wanting more efficiency out of your center but I'm pretty sure that if the other center prospects were asked to carry a 31.2 USG% their true shooting numbers would go down the drain too. For what it's worth he had a 62.2 TS% on 26.1 USG% last season. So I wouldn't worry too much about his efficiency in a reduced role.

Yeah it’s a worthwhile point - I watched a decent handful of clips of him and it demonstrates what’s mentioned in the above article, that he’s capable and willing of taking a lot of mid-range shots he prob won’t take in the NBA to that degree at all.

Also things that stuck out is otoh while he seemed a bit of finesse guy at the rim (tempting to even use the p word) he also points to his nuts at an elite level after big shots so maybe pair him with Sam Cassell and watch him flourish.

[ThePigeon]

Saw this last night, just hadn't got to post it yet lol.

On a more serious note I am all for grabbing a lotto talent big man at 28, especially one that fits the team's play style. Curious the defensive part of that write-up behind the pay wall. Also for a guy that is a senior big man that he says is a potential lotto talent, why is his shooting efficiency so low? For a guy like that to have an EFG/TS% of .529/.561 is concerning to me. I get that he is not going to be asked to shoot/score as much in the pros but still.

He has a ton of offensive responsabilities in his first season as the true number one option on his team. I think some growing pains can be expected. I understand wanting more efficiency out of your center but I'm pretty sure that if the other center prospects were asked to carry a 31.2 USG% their true shooting numbers would go down the drain too. For what it's worth he had a 62.2 TS% on 26.1 USG% last season. So I wouldn't worry too much about his efficiency in a reduced role.

Yeah it’s a worthwhile point - I watched a decent handful of clips of him and it demonstrates what’s mentioned in the above article, that he’s capable and willing of taking a lot of mid-range shots he prob won’t take in the NBA to that degree at all.

Also things that stuck out is otoh while he seemed a bit of finesse guy at the rim (tempting to even use the p word) he also points to his nuts at an elite level after big shots so maybe pair him with Sam Cassell and watch him flourish.

He looks clunky and his 3pt shot looks awkward
I'd rather have an athletic big or Danny Wolf if available

[phincsfan]

This is the time of year that upperclassmen have one last chance to shine.

Broome, Clifford, Jones, Small, Nelson, Sears, Brea, Robinson, Clayton Jr

WVU out so no Javon Small in the dance

[Hal14]

Thomas Haugh continues to look good. Up to 36.3% from 3 on the season now and 81% FT.

Another guy I like for us, who's been coming on strong late in the season is RJ Luis. The Big East POY for St John's. He's a wing..kind of seems like maybe what Jordan Walsh could'v possibly become if he stayed in school all 4 years. Not a great shooter (which may exclude him from strong consideration for BOS) but he can hit some 3's here and there. But he's just a really good, tough 2-way wing who can really defend, rebound, drive the ball..he's tough, he plays hard, has a nose for the ball, always making things happen out there, always making winning plays. Has decent size, strength, athleticism. Kind of old (will be about 22.5 on draft night) but perhaps Brad prefers older guys now who are further in their development, less of a project type of player..

Another guy to keep an eye on (could be available when we pick..and could be a good fit here) is Bogoljub Markovic. He's been mentioned before but he's 6'11", only 19 yrs old..can shoot the 3, handle the ball, pass and his defense isn't that bad. Shades of Aldama, Sabonis, Olynyk and (unfortunately) Poku..

All 3 of these guys (Haugh, Markovic, Luis) are probably on my short list..

I also still like Kam Jones, Ian Jackson, Chaz Lanier and Neoklis Avdalas. Wouldn't hate it if we got Wolf either.

As for Grant Nelson, he's in his 5th year of college basketball..he's old.yet he still can't shoot. 3 yrs in a row now at 27% from 3. And he's not good enough at the other stuff to compensate for the lack of shooting. I doubt he gets drafted..someone will pick him up for their summer league team, though..

[winsomme2]

One player I’m interested to watch is Milan Momcilovic. Seems like a big time shot maker and there’s no better time for that than the tourney.

[165bows]

Sion James showing up in the Tankathon mock at #50.

Still like him quite a bit though I think Hal’s criticism of his scoring volume is valid.

[winsomme2]

Sion James showing up in the Tankathon mock at #50.

Still like him quite a bit though I think Hal’s criticism of his scoring volume is valid.

He reminds me of Lu Dort. He's built like a football player but seems to have a soft touch on his shot.

I guess the reliability of his 3pt shot at the next level will determine his ceiling but he has all the makings of defensive stopper.

Kinda wish he transferred to a Big East school which would have been a step up from Tulane but he would have been more featured than he has been at Duke where there are just too many other talented prospects around him.

[brackdan70]

Speaking of Tankathon. Sergio De Larrea showing up at 28. Good size and offensive skills it appears. Solid combo guard potential at 6’6”. How are the defensive instincts and skills?

[phincsfan]

Speaking of Tankathon. Sergio De Larrea showing up at 28. Good size and offensive skills it appears. Solid combo guard potential at 6’6”. How are the defensive instincts and skills?

Does he play in the NBA next season? That's a big question.

Lot will depend on the sale of the team and the direction the owners want to go.

Here's two scenario's that may play a big part in draft decisions.

1- New owners come in are willing to pay the piper for the chance to win a trophy. Another project or international stash is considered in the 1st to look towards the future.

2- New owners come in and want no part of that bill, but still want a competitive roster. That 28th pick would be looked at to play a bigger role right away if the roster makes some subtractions. Rico and Watson although old men when drafted, may have been looked at as potential contributors in a year or two.

[phincsfan]

Anyone interested in March madness for draft reasons check out the VCU/BYU game Wed. Demin has been slipping a little but he has freaky physical traits and he's young. But, watch Max Shulga for VCU. Very good size and I hate to always use a similar race to compare players to, but he is very comparable to Donte Divincenzo. UDFA and I think he has the skills to make it to the league in a year or two.

There's also a Russia/Ukraine connection with that game. Shulga is from Kyiv and Demin is from Moscow.

Watch on YouTube

[playa-hater]

Took a good look at Danny Wolf.so much to like about him yet so many concerns. Defensively foremost. Shooting and finishing with bigger players as well. But Defensively has IQ and versatility I like