Potential Wizards Draft Target Could Slide Out of Lottery

In a draft with as many questions near the top as the 2025 class offers, it's the job of the Washington Wizards to do their homework and react to how those above them draft.

It's unlikely that the five teams picking ahead of them all favor the same prospects outside of the obvious in Cooper Flagg, and it'll be up to them to find the best available player at #6. No one has a good idea how the first few picks will shake out with nearly four weeks to go until draft order, especially as some prospects leverage performances in the combine, private workouts and personal interviews in raising their draft stock.

While others capitalize on word of mouth momentum, other prospects will fall as a result of the scrambling order. Derik Queen, once favored as a likely top-10 pick, has evidently come out of May worse than he entered.

Yahoo Sports' Kevin O'Connor reported that his lottery buzz has been recently "dinged" in the eyes of NBA executives, with "concern over his conditioning and his lack of progress as a shooter" overwhelming their scouting reports.

Queen could fall out of the lottery entirely as rumors evolve into bona fide worry, but O'Connor says that he'll still be there at #18 for the Wizards should they still want him after already picking at #6.

The reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Year is coming off of a standout one-and-done season at Maryland, where he captivated as a point-forward with nuanced ball handling and self-creation skills to couple with his standard big man scoring package.

He's a bit of a wild card as a draft prospect, not fitting into any obvious NBA-ready role, but carries the star upside to have inspired the general belief that he's worthy of a pick in the top half of the first round. He's certainly already captured the attention of the Wizards, receiving a draft lottery night shoutout from childhood friend Bub Carrington before returning the favor at the combine.

It's up to them to determine how he'll fare on draft night, as they may have several chances to scoop him up amidst these reports.

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