2025 Draft prospects - thread 2

[BullsSD]

Raynaud will be good.

Let me clarify. I totally agree he has potential and I like him as a prospect as well. I just think taking him at #12 would not be the best use of value when almost every draft has him going round 2.

You sure did nail both Bam and Naz tho!

Do you see Fleming as being able to reach a Naz Reid type production level? Or are you out on him?

[BullsSD]

You can always move talent. Drafting for need boxes you in if it does not workout.

I agree, but that's IF you showcase the talent. Billy doesn't play rookies. High upside guys that are non productive don't return value like they should. Think Kuminga, he was MUCH cheaper before this recent playoffs showcase he had. I wanted to trade for him while he was riding the bench, now I think he may be too expensive.

If we draft a guard and the season begins and he's not playing, the only one who will make sense to trade with any value is and will be Coby. Ultimately we simply just don't have this issue if the roster construction is better thought out.

[Chi town]

https://youtu.be/nttnIYl7B9U?si=NiSDzJ7c-eLSauZ

Coward at Eastern Washington.
That shot is real and smooth as silk.
That length plays on D.

My new board at 12 is…

Coward
KJ
Noa

Coward is the perfect fit between Coby and Giddey his length with Buz would be crazy disruptive. I think with his motor he would be exceptional in the open court too.

[Muzbar]

I've been doing a deeper dive into prospects I'm not too keen on, to try and see if I can be swayed.

Collin Murray-Boyles: I watched several videos of him, trying to see something to try and change my opinion of him. His defense is obviously his best attribute and he nice very good on that end. However, his offense is extremely underwhelming, it's all pick and rolls and put backs, he seems like a lane clogger, I'm not impressed with him in the slightest.

Not even remotely true.

His isolation, face up and post game were very good last season. He can attack with multiple dribbles and finish. He was also a hub for the team as a playmaker in the half court reliably. At bare minimum, he's competent to good at everything offensively.... except as a shooter, which is obviously a big deal and can limit his upside. But, anyone pretending he's just some rim runner isn't watching him.

He's skilled on both sides, but needs a Randle or Aaron Gordon improvement as a shooter, which isn't unrealistic.

You've obviously watched more of CMB than I have, so I'll take your word on it. However, any time I watch a video of his I always come away unimpressed, the only thing that seems to stand out is his defense.

People seem to praise his playmaking abilities but he averaged 2.4apg and 2.4tpg, I'm not buying it, sounds a lot like Julius Randle, no thanks.

His shooting definitely needs work, he shot 70% from the free throw line in college, whilst that isn't horrible, it's certainly not good and doesn't distill any confidence that he could become a better shooter.

But if the Bulls draft him at least they have a good shooting coach to... oh, wait.

[CobysHairpick]

I finally did my deep dive. Why isn't Maxime Raynaud mocked higher? This guy might be the biggest sleeper of the draft. I noted Danny Wolf months ago as a guy to watch. I think I like Raynaud much more, and I would suggest we consider him at 12.

Very questionable defense. A 0.6 DBPM and a two-year sample size of Stanford being better defensively with Reynaud on the bench. He's also a senior. A senior big with a DBPM < 1 is a big red flag.

Keep in mind that he's a late bloomer. If his offense can improve tremendously, I don't see why his defense can't improve either. He's had multiple games of 4 and 5 blocks and finished the season on a strong note with 4 and 5 blocks in his two NIT tournament games. Pre-draft rankings be damned, Raynaud will be good and I don't see why he shouldn't be an option at 12 other than the Bulls having three centers under contract. The Bulls interviewed a few centers at the combine so they should definitely take a look at Raynaud if they aren't already.

[DuckIII]

I can see why Queen is falling after the combine. He may be too small to play NBA C, and he's far too unathletic to play forward.
Even with a ton of basketball skill & feel, he may end up falling into the situation where Jahlil Okafor couldn't get any minutes.

Height: 6.77" w/o shoes
Hand Length: 32nd percentile
Lane Agility: 20th percentile
Standing Vert: 10th percentile
Wingspan: 15th percentile

Throw in that he has a rep of not playing or training very hard, I can see him freefalling in the draft.

I was a “soft” pass on Queen already. 6’7? It’s now a hard pass and he’s gonna slide.

[DuckIII]

Just in general I think the Bulls are in a position to draft BPA. You basically have Buzelis, Giddey and maybe Coby White as base pieces. No one else even matters. Given that Buz could eventually play the 3 or 4 and Giddey might end up as 1,2 or 3, you can really take anyone.

The Bulls will need a center but they should have massive capspace in 2026 and maybe you make it happen that way.

In any draft you never regret taking the best player available.

I agree with this philosophy..

I disagree, especially with Billy Donovan and AK running show. You take BPA early in full rebuild. We are not doing full rebuild. Taking a guard at this juncture, who wouldn’t play at all in 2026 or if he did, would reduce value of our trade assets, would be dumb. Our roster is totally backcourt heavy and it’s dumb. We need to balance it out and since we don’t have roster spots, it needs to be via draft.

We have the 1/2/3 of our lineup. Take a damn 4 or 5 or an extremely high upside pick we believe in like Coward who can atleast coexist with our core.

Free agency is for filling in the roster. The draft is for getting the best players you can get.

I’m not a “always BPA no matter what” type of guy. It’s a lot more complicated than that and depends on a lot of context. Way too rigid a philosophy in my opinion. That’s how you end up drafting Ricky Rubio and Johnny Flynn in the same year, or have Noel, Okafor and Embiid on the same roster. That’s dumb. Gotta be more flexible.

Generally speaking, I believe in grouping draft picks by tiers. If you have 2-3 guys in the same tier, I think you have some wiggle room there to draft for need. But I would never drop down a tier to draft for need. Ever. And sometimes a tier can just be one guy.

[othawhitemeat]

I finally did my deep dive. Why isn't Maxime Raynaud mocked higher? This guy might be the biggest sleeper of the draft. I noted Danny Wolf months ago as a guy to watch. I think I like Raynaud much more, and I would suggest we consider him at 12.

He should be mocked higher due his size and skillset. But he is 22. I can see why 15 NBA teams decide to skip him just because of age. He is for sure not top 10 prospect, but his skillset at his size might suggest that he could carve role to be decent player. Lottery draft is still about gambling just like lottery odds winning lottery draft. It's about upside.

I would not be completely mad if Bulls reached. But it's like drafting Dougie Mcbuckets at 14. It's waste of pick for us at 12 if there is upside calibre player available to pick.

Totally get the age thing, but I think he's a different 22 than McDermott. Unlike being a coaches son, Raynaud is a late bloomer and started playing organized basketball relatively late. I think this guy is a true diamond in the rough.

This is an eye popping skillset and having him next to Matas would be a ton of fun.

Read on Twitter

With you on Raynaud. Not a fan of Queen though.

[othawhitemeat]

Give me one of Coward, KJ, Essengue, Clayton Jr., or maybe Sorber. Think Queen will be not very good, def not Wolf, etc.

I'll add Bryant to that list of wants.

Talented dude, but would want to know more in terms of his desire/mindset.

[League Circles]

I can see why Queen is falling after the combine. He may be too small to play NBA C, and he's far too unathletic to play forward.
Even with a ton of basketball skill & feel, he may end up falling into the situation where Jahlil Okafor couldn't get any minutes.

Height: 6.77" w/o shoes
Hand Length: 32nd percentile
Lane Agility: 20th percentile
Standing Vert: 10th percentile
Wingspan: 15th percentile

Throw in that he has a rep of not playing or training very hard, I can see him freefalling in the draft.

I was a “soft” pass on Queen already. 6’7? It’s now a hard pass and he’s gonna slide.

He's not a top 20 prospect IMO, especially not for the Bulls.

[Repeat 3-peat]

For the fans of Maluach, rumors are that he has a draft promise from the Raptors at #9.

https://www.nbcsports.com/nba/news/2025-nba-draft-rumors-spurs-likely-to-keep-no-2-pick-draft-combine-standouts

[othawhitemeat]

I feel you, but no thanks.

I’m with you SCO. Pass.

Queen has ridiculous talent. I just don’t trust he will ever take it serious.

I can see Queen going high or taking a big slide.

You don't even know him. He seems like he can score from anywhere on the floor. Has excellent touch with either hand. Rebounds and plays really good D. He's definitely in the group of players id consider at #12.

Also as I suspected, the posted measurements weren't correct. Let him fall like Matas. I'll be giddy (pun intended).

Read on Twitter

?t=WcbdEHTFcEOuVpqJ9A930w&s=19

Not known for his defense. Known for his skill on O in terms of passing, footwork, and has potential to shoot. Also, seems to be known for laziness. The talent and skillset is there but is the motivation?

[sco]

For the fans of Maluach, rumors are that he has a draft promise from the Raptors at #9.

https://www.nbcsports.com/nba/news/2025-nba-draft-rumors-spurs-likely-to-keep-no-2-pick-draft-combine-standouts

[League Circles]

In any draft you never regret taking the best player available.

I agree with this philosophy..

I disagree, especially with Billy Donovan and AK running show. You take BPA early in full rebuild. We are not doing full rebuild. Taking a guard at this juncture, who wouldn’t play at all in 2026 or if he did, would reduce value of our trade assets, would be dumb. Our roster is totally backcourt heavy and it’s dumb. We need to balance it out and since we don’t have roster spots, it needs to be via draft.

We have the 1/2/3 of our lineup. Take a damn 4 or 5 or an extremely high upside pick we believe in like Coward who can atleast coexist with our core.

Free agency is for filling in the roster. The draft is for getting the best players you can get.

I’m not a “always BPA no matter what” type of guy. It’s a lot more complicated than that and depends on a lot of context. Way too rigid a philosophy in my opinion. That’s how you end up drafting Ricky Rubio and Johnny Flynn in the same year, or have Noel, Okafor and Embiid on the same roster. That’s dumb. Gotta be more flexible.

Generally speaking, I believe in grouping draft picks by tiers. If you have 2-3 guys in the same tier, I think you have some wiggle room there to draft for need. But I would never drop down a tier to draft for need. Ever. And sometimes a tier can just be one guy.

Very well put. I especially wouldn't suggest drafting for immediate year 1 need at a position, but im general you want your 2 - 4 year outlook in player roles to be such that if you hit on your picks, it does in fact help your team, on court or in trade. You can't get too clogged at spots or guys won't develop and trade value will dive. That's why I think we simply have to get rid of Vuc or Collins this summer. Can't play more than 3 guys and Smith should be one of them and a rookie or young FA should be the 3rd.

[Chi town]

For the fans of Maluach, rumors are that he has a draft promise from the Raptors at #9.

https://www.nbcsports.com/nba/news/2025-nba-draft-rumors-spurs-likely-to-keep-no-2-pick-draft-combine-standouts

Yep. That’s his floor IMO.

Total Masai pick.

I can see Blazers taking Coward.

[Dan Z]

ESPN's mock draft has the Bulls selecting Egor Denim. Have they been reading Duck's posts?

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/45076130/2025-nba-mock-draft-pick-projections-picks-post-lottery-cooper-flagg-dallas-mavericks

[Muzbar]

I can see why Queen is falling after the combine. He may be too small to play NBA C, and he's far too unathletic to play forward.
Even with a ton of basketball skill & feel, he may end up falling into the situation where Jahlil Okafor couldn't get any minutes.

Height: 6.77" w/o shoes
Hand Length: 32nd percentile
Lane Agility: 20th percentile
Standing Vert: 10th percentile
Wingspan: 15th percentile

Throw in that he has a rep of not playing or training very hard, I can see him freefalling in the draft.

I was a “soft” pass on Queen already. 6’7? It’s now a hard pass and he’s gonna slide.

I don't know where 6'7" came from? He was measured 6'9¼" barefoot at the combine.

Read on Twitter

[DuckIII]

ESPN's mock draft has the Bulls selecting Egor Denim. Have they been reading Duck's posts?

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/45076130/2025-nba-mock-draft-pick-projections-picks-post-lottery-cooper-flagg-dallas-mavericks

If they haven’t been, they should.

Edit: They might be. The have Asa Newell going 21st. And in their review of Demin trashed our idiot front office.

[TheSuzerain]

I can see why Queen is falling after the combine. He may be too small to play NBA C, and he's far too unathletic to play forward.
Even with a ton of basketball skill & feel, he may end up falling into the situation where Jahlil Okafor couldn't get any minutes.

Height: 6.77" w/o shoes
Hand Length: 32nd percentile
Lane Agility: 20th percentile
Standing Vert: 10th percentile
Wingspan: 15th percentile

Throw in that he has a rep of not playing or training very hard, I can see him freefalling in the draft.

I was a “soft” pass on Queen already. 6’7? It’s now a hard pass and he’s gonna slide.

He's 6'9" bare foot.

Basically identical dimensions to Horford/Naz Reid/Sengun.

The Queen slander is out of control.

[BullsSD]

I can see why Queen is falling after the combine. He may be too small to play NBA C, and he's far too unathletic to play forward.
Even with a ton of basketball skill & feel, he may end up falling into the situation where Jahlil Okafor couldn't get any minutes.

Height: 6.77" w/o shoes
Hand Length: 32nd percentile
Lane Agility: 20th percentile
Standing Vert: 10th percentile
Wingspan: 15th percentile

Throw in that he has a rep of not playing or training very hard, I can see him freefalling in the draft.

I was a “soft” pass on Queen already. 6’7? It’s now a hard pass and he’s gonna slide.

He's 6'9" bare foot.

Basically identical dimensions to Horford/Naz Reid/Sengun.

The Queen slander is out of control.

Sometimes people focus on measurements too much. Those should be supplemental to what you actually see on the court. Queen is a no brainer if available at 12. He passes the eye test for me. Don’t forget how he stepped up and hit that game winner in the tournament, can’t have too much clutch. There have been plenty of effective players who don’t jump out of the gym at that position.

Ya’ll have convinced me we do need to take BPA over a big though. I love the idea to pivot by tier then position. I swear to God though, if they announce Jase Richardson on draft night I’m going to be in my feels for weeks wondering how the hell we are going to fix this roster after adding a 6 foot guard to it going forward.