(AP) – The two-day NBA draft is set to begin June 25 in Brooklyn at the home of the Nets, the Barclays Center.
Duke freshman forward Cooper Flagg has long been projected to be the No. 1 overall pick. That pick is owned by the Dallas Mavericks, a boost for a franchise after its shocking trade of star Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Flagg was named AP men’s college basketball national player of the year and headlines a lengthy list of “one-and-done” top prospects who entered the draft after a lone college season. That includes the Rutgers duo of Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey, Baylor’s VJ Edgecombe, Texas’ Tre Johnson and Oklahoma’s Jeremiah Fears.
Bailey, in particular, has turned into one of the more vexing prospects heading into Wednesday night’s draft. His talent and infectious personality are apparent both on video and in person. But he’s getting questions about his maturity as he enters the adult world of the NBA.
Notably, Bailey canceled a scheduled workout with the Philadelphia 76ers, who hold the No. 3 overall pick. He has not had a public workout for any team, a puzzling strategy that got him called out by critics ranging from current NBA players to analysts to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.
The Brooklyn Nets have a league-high four first-round picks, the first coming at No. 8. The Utah Jazz and Washington Wizards each have a pair of first-round picks after ranking as the league’s two worst teams.
Another team to watch is the San Antonio Spurs, who have the second and 14th picks as they build around 7-foot-3 rising French star Victor Wembanyama.
And then there’s the Oklahoma City Thunder, who won a league-best 68 games and reached the NBA Finals. They’ve got two first-round picks, the first at 15th, to strengthen an already deep roster.
The first round of the 2025 NBA Draft is set to begin at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday, June 25, and the second round will start the next day, June 26, at 8 p.m. ET as well.
