2025 NBA Draft Big Board: Ranking the Top Prospects

Highlights

• The 2025 NBA Draft Class looks promising with well-known players like Cooper Flagg leading the way.
• International prospects are becoming more prevalent in NBA scouting, as seen in the 2025 Big Board.
• The tier ranking system provides a structured way to evaluate draft prospects and their potential.

The 2024 NBA Draft was expected to be one of the weakest classes of the 21st century, with no clear-cut first option and few projected stars. While diamonds can certainly be found in the rough, teams had a hard time differentiating from future All-Stars and busts.

On the other hand, the class of 2025 is projected to be one of the best classes of all time. Headlined by Duke University commit Cooper Flagg, who is the consensus number-one pick, the first round will run very, very deep, with plenty of talent to be had outside of the top selections.

As with recent drafts, basketball is becoming a global game, and plenty of the top prospects are international players. After Victor Wembanyama took over the league in 2023, it’s clear that the best players often skip the traditional route of playing college basketball, and NBA scouts are flying all over the world to get their eyes on the best young players in developmental and professional leagues.

With just under a year separating us from Adam Silver calling names on the stage in the 2025 draft, GIVEMESPORT is constantly updating our rankings of the best players projected to be selected in the 2025 NBA Draft

1 Cooper Flagg

Flagg is projected to be a generational prospect

Cooper Flagg will likely be the player most basketball fans are already familiar with from this list. His two-way upside at his 6 ft 9 in frame has captured the imaginations of scouts everywhere.

Flagg will need to show improvements in rounding out his offensive game to definitively lock down his spot as the best prospect in the 2025 draft. Before heading off to college and getting the opportunity to be the next great villain of the Duke Blue Devils, Flagg was recruited as a member of the USA Select Team. At only seventeen years old, he is the youngest member of the squad.

Jamal Mosley, current Orlando Magic and USA Select Team head coach, had high praise for Flagg.

“You can just see the quiet confidence that he carries with himself…[He has a] high basketball IQ, tough, willing to learn. He gets to the spots that he needs to for a shot a lot, is able to get to the rim, great touch on his shot. I mean, he can play. There’s no in-between. There’s me saying, in many different forms, he can just flat out play.” -Mosley

2 Airious Bailey

Bailey is an elite consolation prize to whoever misses out on Flagg

“Ace” Bailey will provide stiff competition for Flagg this upcoming season, pushing him into the number-one pick conversation. Bailey possesses the size and skill that scouts dream of when it comes to putting together a scoring wing.

He will need to continue to grow as a playmaker to really hit on the superstar potential that some scouts see in his game. His upcoming season at Rutgers will be important to establishing him as a credible threat to Flagg’s hold on the top pick in the draft.

3 VJ Edgecombe

Edgecombe is dominating international play

VJ Edgecombe is undoubtedly one of the best athletes in the 2025 class. Edgecombe has been a star for the Bahamas during the Olympic Qualifiers. Despite being on a team with three actual NBA players Deandre Ayton , Buddy Hield , and Eric Gordon , he has been the standout.

“VJ’s been busting our [expletive] in practice…he’s shown serious flashes. He’s very coachable. He wants to learn the game, and he’s fun to be around and play with. He’s a high-character kid; the game always rewards that, and he plays the game the right way.” -Hield

He scored an efficient 20 points in their 96-85 win over Finland and then followed that with another stellar 21-point performance in their 90-81 win over Poland. Hield sang his praises after the win over the Fins.

4 Nolan Traore

Traore is going to be a top point guard

The golden age of French basketball continues with another terrific prospect coming from overseas. Nolan Traore will be in contention for the top point guard of the 2025 class thanks to his speed, scoring, and passing ability.

It’s tough to find a huge fault in his game. Traore may need to fully establish himself on the defensive end, leading up to the draft. If he can prove to be a consistent asset on that side of the basketball with Saint-Quentin, he’s sure to be a lottery pick.

5 Dylan Harper

The son of a five-time NBA champ

Dylan Harper has a huge advantage over many of the guys in his draft year: he’s the son of former NBA player Ron Harper. That kind of tutelage has allowed Harper to develop a noticeably good basketball IQ, particularly on the offensive end.

If he can show a consistent three-pointer at Rutgers in the upcoming season, Harper should have a chance to push for the top pick in the draft.

6 Hugo Gonzalez

An elite defender who can hold his own

Hugo Gonzalez will offer another international prospect worth monitoring near the top of the draft. He has an early case for being one of the best defensive prospects in this draft and offers some great slashing ability on the offensive end.

Gonzalez will have something to prove regarding his shooting ability. His mechanics are solid, he will just need to get the numbers to match up. Next season with Real Madrid will be an important one to follow for his growth and development.

7 Egor Demin

An oversized point guard enters the Big 12

Standing at 6 feet 9 inches, Egor Demin is the latest tall point guard from Europe that requires attention. He’s got great gifts as a primary ball-handler and set-up artist.

His production hasn’t shown him to be a good shooter, even though his mechanics aren’t awful. If he can find ways to use his size and leverage it for good shooting, he’ll be a name worth monitoring when he starts his college career at BYU.

8 Khaman Maluach

Will be Flagg’s NCAA running mate

Flagg should have a fun time at Duke in the upcoming season with international prospect Khaman Maluach backing him up. Maluach has outstanding size at the center position. He even has a good shooting touch to go with his ability to protect the rim.

Teams will pay close attention to how he adjusts to the college level in the upcoming season where the competition level will be much stiffer.

9 Rocco Zikarsky

Rocco Zikarsky is a beast inside the paint. He looks to be very valuable both as an interior scorer and a rim protector. If he can round out his offensive game during his upcoming season with Brisbane in the NBL, he should draw a lot of looks from NBA scouts.

10 Noa Essengue

One of the best athletes in the draft

Noa Essengue is a tremendous athlete with loads of potential. Standing at 6 feet 10 inches, Essengue has great size to be a productive combo forward in the future.

His game still needs a lot of polishing though and that will be the main focus for scouts watching him over in France.

11 Tre Johnson

Johnson will be a big-time scorer

Tre Johnson has displayed a lot of upside as a scorer to this point in his basketball journey. He is extremely skilled at scoring very difficult buckets.

Adding size and muscle to his slender frame and learning to play better in the offensive sets instead of just creating for himself, will be two vital elements to keep an eye on during his freshman year with the Texas Longhorns.

12 Collin Murray-Boyles

An excellent defender who needs to add a shot

Collin Murray-Boyles is one hell of a defensive player, who is also capable of leveraging his size for scoring on the other end. His outside scoring is a complete non-factor at the moment.

That will be something to keep an eye on as he heads into his sophomore season at South Carolina.

13 Isaiah Evans

The next great Duke forward is overshadowed by Flagg

When it comes to NBA player comparisons, the name Isaiah Evans cannot seem to escape is Brandon Ingram . With Evans heading to Duke, that likely won’t stop any time soon.

Both players have slender builds with good upside as individual scorers and playmakers. If his frame can fill out adequately with time, Evans is a name really worth monitoring.

14 Liam McNeeley

A lights-out shooter

Liam McNeeley is arguably the best shooter in the 2025 NBA Draft. His mechanics from the perimeter are as consistent as one will find. He has a good overall game to compliment his impressive shooting.

There will be some questions about his overall athleticism that may need answering in his upcoming season at UConn.

15 Jarin Stevenson

A well-rounded offensive player

Jarin Steven will be returning to Alabama for another season to polish his craft. His ability to stretch the court from the power forward position will be his biggest selling point. However, there is more to like about his finishing ability, rebounding, and knack for timing.

Stevenson will need to continue filling out his frame and hone in on improving his overall defense before scouts can likely truly fall in love with his game.

16 Flory Bidunga

Bidunga is playing for a blue-blood school

Flory Bidunga will have a chance to turn some heads in his freshman year with the Kansas Jayhawks. He moves well for someone of his size, displaying tremendous athleticism and defensive upside.

The more he continues to fill out his offensive game, the higher Bidunga is likely to rise on the big boards.

17 Karter Knox

The family name is not helping

The younger brother of NBA bust Kevin, Karter is joining Calapari and the Razorbacks in Fayetteville. He is a solid scorer with great athleticism, but the family name could do more harm than good.

He has a tendency to shoot the midrange shot, which will make “that boy nice” watchers swoon, but fans who appreciate analytics throw a fit if he gets drafted by their team.

18 Donnie Freeman

Oversized, pass first guard

At 6-9, Freeman already has elite passing tools and will use a season or two with Syracuse to find his groove.

He is a five-star recruit with the tools to be a solid NBA player, but his jump shot and physicality need to be evaluated at the NCAA level before a proper profile can be built.

19 Jalil Bethea

Bethea is best with the ball in his hands

Bethea is a high-level scoring guard who can get buckets from anywhere on the court and has the strength and athleticism to get to his spots.

A McDonald’s All-American in high school Bethea signed with Miami (FL) and is expected to rise up into the lottery if all goes well for the Hurricanes. He can handle the ball but could improve his passing and court vision in college.

20 Dink Pate

Pate is the youngest pro in America

Dink Pate needed to find a new home for next season with the G-League Ignite shutting down. He became the youngest professional basketball player in America after he signed with the Capitanes de Ciudad de México of the G-League.

He has great size and a good feel in the guard position. He will need to see improvement as a shooter before he can be fully trusted.