2025 NBA Mock Draft, Lottery Edition 2.0—With Fantasy Basketball Fallout

The first pick of the 2025 NBA Draft: Locked in.

The second, third, and fourth picks of the 2025 NBA Draft: Virtually locked in.

The rest of the 2025 NBA Draft: Who the hell knows?

This top-heavy draft class is currently a pain in the tush for NBA general managers, and will soon be a pain in the tush for fantasy hoops players. Y’see, after Cooper Flagg, Ace Bailey, and Dylan Harper find their homes, we’re looking at a big bowl of question marks.

But that won’t stop me from taking a second shot at mocking the draft’s first 14 picks, and theorizing how they might perform, fantasy-wise, in their new digs.

1) Dallas Mavericks

Cooper Flagg, F, Duke

Mock Spot 1.0: 1st ➡️

The Situation: Barring a four-team trade that lands Dallas Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant, and Jaylen Brown, this is fait accompli, and it makes perfect sense for both the player and the team.

With Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving in the building, Flagg won’t have to worry about immediately being Dallas’ alpha dog, and it’s not often that a potentially generational player is drafted into a situation where he doesn’t have to be generational from game one.

Fantasy Verdict: As he will be the Mavs’ third options, Flagg shouldn’t be a super-high fantasy pick. If he’s available in the third round, snatch him up, but considering his place on the depth chart, he’s not yet a top-20 player, despite his potential ability to fill up box scores.

2) San Antonio Spurs

Dylan Harper, G, Rutgers

Mock Spot 1.0: 2nd ➡️

The Situation: The Spurs have some quality guards on their roster, but one of them is named Chris Paul, and, newsflash, CP3 is old af. Harper gives San Antonio another young backcourt building block, and will bring the proud franchise one step closer to a postseason return.

Fantasy Verdict: Aside from Victor Wembanyama, there are exactly zero fantasy guarantees on the Spurs roster—even reigning Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle isn’t a sure thing. Considering the uncertainty re: his court time, Harper is a mid-round dart throw.

3) Philadelphia 76ers

Ace Bailey, F, Rutgers

Mock Spot 1.0: 3rd ➡️

The Situation: If the board falls as such, GM Elton Brand will be thrilled, because Philly is seriously deficient on the wings. If Joel Embiid is healthy, the former Scarlet Knight could be the former MVP’s bestest forward buddy ever.

Fantasy Verdict: Yes, the Sixers were trash in 2024-25, but they have some nice pieces across the board in Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Jared McCain, so Bailey’s fantasy points will have to come on the defensive end. If you need boards and steals, Ace might be a good get in the fifth or sixth round.

4) Charlotte Hornets

V.J. Edgecombe, G, Baylor

Mock Spot 1.0: 4th ➡️

The Situation: The Hornets you see today might be very different than the Hornets you see in September, as there are whispers that GM Jeff Peterson might be ready to move on from LaMelo Ball. If that comes to pass, Edge will become an immediate contributor. And even if Ball isn’t moved, he’ll still be one of the team’s top offensive options.

Fantasy Verdict: Of the top four players in the draft class, Edge in Charlotte might be the safest situation in fantasyland. If Ball is swapped, a late-third or early-fourth-round slot is reasonable. And if for some reason he makes it to round five, pounce.

5) Utah Jazz

Jeremiah Fears, PG, Oklahoma

Mock Spot 1.0: 5th ➡️

The Situation: The Jazz have some quality players on the roster—Lauri Markkanen, Walker Kessler, Collin Sexton—yet they continue to, in a word, stink, meaning there’s some sort of disconnect. And when there’s disconnect, you try and get yourself a smart point guard to tie the whole mess together. Fears might be The Guy.

Fantasy Verdict: Considering their weird roster, anything goes with Utah’s rotations, so the ex-Sooner could begin the season as the starter, or the third guard off the bench. That being the case, tread lightly, all the way to the sixth or seventh round.

6) Washington Wizards

Tre Johnson, SG, Texas

Mock Spot 1.0: 6th ➡️

The Situation: The Wizards are such a mess that any newcomer will have the opportunity to shine, and the versatile Johnson is just the kind of player who’d take advantage. If he has a good camp, don’t be shocked if he replaces Jordan Poole in the starting lineup—or forces him out of town altogether.

Fantasy Verdict: My gut feeling is that Johnson will be this draft’s Donovan Mitchell, a guy who outplays his selection spot, big-time. Snatching him as early as round four wouldn’t be a terrible idea.

7) New Orleans Pelicans

Khaman Maluach, C, Duke

Mock Spot 1.0: 12th ⬆️

The Situation: With Zion Williamson’s New Orleans future very much in question, the Pels will almost definitely go big, and since they won’t be able to make any noise out west for a season or four, rolling with a center who needs a couple years of marination wouldn’t be a bad idea.

Fantasy Verdict: An Yves Missi/Khaman Maluach twin-towers front court could be a problem for the league…in about three years. For now, Maluach—who will put up some solid defensive digits, but could kill your scoring and free throw percentage categories—is a late-round dart throw.

8) Brooklyn Nets

Kon Knueppel, SG/SF, Duke

Mock Spot 1.0: 10th ⬆️

The Situation: The Nets have so many holes in their lineup that literally anybody in the world—first-rounder, second-rounder, undrafted free agent, me—has a shot to crack the starting lineup. Knueppel is a Swiss Army knife of a wing who has a winning pedigree and oodles of potential.

Fantasy Verdict: The former Dookie could be a mid-round steal, so if he’s still on the board in, say, the seventh, make it so.

9) Toronto Raptors

Egor Demin, G, Brigham Young

Mock Spot 1.0: n/a ⬆️

The Situation: Like the Nets, the Raps have needs everywhere—or almost everywhere, as Scottie Barnes is two or three quality teammates away from evolving into a superstar. This all means that Demin—one of the pre-draft cycle’s most notable risers—could see plenty of burn.

Fantasy Verdict: This might be a Josh Giddey situation, in that Demin could be a stat monster who doesn’t impact winning. But we fantasy players couldn’t care less about wins and losses, just points, boards, and assists. Demin might just get you plenty of those, so a sixth- or seventh-round spot seems reasonable.

10) Houston Rockets

Kasparas Jakucionis, G, Illinois

Mock Spot 1.0: 11th ⬆️

The Situation: The Rockets boast one of the deepest rosters in the Association, so they have the luxury of grabbing whoever they feel is the best player available, regardless of the position. This will be the ideal situation for the 19-year-old, who would be lucky to be taken under Fred VanVleet’s wing.

Fantasy Verdict: Since Houston has so many options, any Rocket not named Alperen Sengun should be pushed to the back of your draft line. The feisty Fighting Illini ballhandler can be left on the waiver wire for now.

11) Portland Trail Blazers

Liam McNeeley, F, Connecticut

Mock Spot 1.0: n/a ⬆️

The Situation: The Blazers are coming off of a nice 36-win season, and their deep roster sports an average age of 24.2, putting them in a position to grab a specialist. McNeeley is considered to be one of the draft’s best shooters, and an off-the-bench wing who can score is just what coach Chauncey Billups needs.

Fantasy Verdict: It’ll be tough for anybody to sneak into the Blazers’ rotation, so McNeeley will be either a waiver wire wonder, or a wait’ll-next-year option.

12) Chicago Bulls

Derik Queen, PF/C, Maryland

Mock Spot 1.0: 7th ⬇️

The Situation: What with Nikola Vucevic on the trading block and Patrick Williams on the precipice of bust status, the Bulls would be thrilled if Queen falls into their lap. If Vooch is indeed moved, Queen could slide into the starting lineup on opening night, where he’d give Chicago some much-needed testicular fortitude.

Fantasy Verdict: Queen is light years away from being a Vucevic-level double-double machine, but given 25-30 minutes a night, he could help you in rebounds, blocks, and shooting percentage. Grab him late, but don’t let him get to the waiver wire.

13) Atlanta Hawks

Collin Murray-Boyles, PF, South Carolina

Mock Spot 1.0: 14th ⬆️

The Situation: It feels like Atlanta is on the verge of blowing it up, which means letting Clint Capela walk in free agency. If that all goes down, CMB will be given plenty of opportunity

The Fantasy Verdict: The problem with adding any Atlanta Hawk to your fantasy roster is that Trae Young exists. Ice Trae is arguably the biggest ball hog in the league, thus diminishing anybody’s fantasy value. Murray-Boyles is worthy of a late-round pick in 12- or 14-man leagues. However, in smaller leagues, take a pass until you see what Atlanta’s rotation looks like.

14) San Antonio Spurs

Carter Bryant, F, Arizona

Mock Spot 1.0: n/a ⬆️

The Situation: As noted in the above Dylan Harper breakdown, Wemby is the Spurs’ #1 and everybody else is #2. That said, Bryant has the athleticism and skill-set to become a thing.

The Fantasy Verdict: Barring a perfect player-to-team match, when you approach the tail-end of the lottery, your fantasy options take a nosedive. So blow off Bryant on your draft night—as well as most anybody chosen after him in this top-heavy collection.