UConn Star Receives New Ranking Before 2025 NBA Draft

Liam McNeeley's stock has been all over the place ahead of the 2025 NBA Draft.

Feb 11, 2025; Omaha, Nebraska, USA; Connecticut Huskies forward Liam McNeeley (30) celebrates a basket against the Creighton Bluejays during the second half at CHI Health Center Omaha. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-Imagn Images | Steven Branscombe-Imagn Images

Former UConn Husky Liam McNeeley expects to hear his name in the first round of the NBA Draft this week. Whether that’s as early as the late lottery picks on the high end or falling towards the final picks of the night remains to be seen.

Mock drafts and player rankings have him placed everywhere in between, and the chaotic nature of the NBA’s draft only makes it more difficult to gauge where he might land. The disparity in those rankings grew even further as The Athletic’s John Hollinger released his final player rankings the day before the draft and put the 19-year-old wing at No. 29 on his list.

Hollinger’s rankings were tier-based, and McNeeley was the final player mentioned in the seventh tier labeled “Upside Plays”, which happened to be the final tier dedicated solely to projected first-round picks.

Despite the low ranking, Hollinger was sure to declare that he’s in the camp of analysts who don’t accept McNeeley’s questionable shooting as a freshman as the standard by which he should be judged as an NBA prospect.

“Let’s start here: McNeeley shot only 31.7 percent from 3, and I straight up reject this as a summary of his shooting ability,” Hollinger wrote. “There may be some bumps along the way, but I believe too much in the shooting to keep McNeeley out of my first round.”

McNeeley came to UConn with high expectations as a three-point shooter that he simply didn’t meet. While 31% isn’t a great number, it isn’t exactly awful for a college freshman – unless you’re McNeeley, who shot over 40% in high school.

That’s what put him on the radar for the NBA as well as UConn, and some scouts and analysts are banking on him performing closer to the mean at the next level than what he displayed for the Huskies.

Still, while McNeeley should hear his name called by the end of Wednesday night, if it happens in the later selections, as this player ranking might suggest, it’s a clear sign of the confidence level in that theory from the league’s top decision makers.