4 NBA Draft Prospects We Love Not Named Cooper Flagg or Dylan Harper

Over the last month, I’ve done several thousand NBA mock drafts, and the first two picks have been identical since mock #1:

1) Cooper Flagg to Dallas

2) Dylan Harper to San Antonio

Most mockers have Ace Bailey coming off the board at three, followed by some iteration of Tre Johnson and V.J. Edgecombe. Beyond that, things get funky.

Point being, the 2025 NBA Draft is about as top-heavy as it gets, meaning there will be some gems who could be nabbed at the middle—or even the bottom—of the first round.

Here are four of my faves:

Liam McNeeley, F, Connecticut

Sure, L-Mac’s floor in in the Corey Kispert/Gradey Dick range, but the sharpshooter’s ceiling is Kyle Korver, and in today’s NBA, if you can get a Korver—or even a Korver lite—that’s a win.

If he lands in a city that needs threes—the Desmond Bane-less Memphis Grizzlies come to mind— the 2025 Big East Freshman of the Year could crack a rotation and end up as a mid-round steal.

Derik Queen, C, Maryland

Queen could evolve into the epitome of the modern NBA big: Muscle, decent outside shot, attitude, and a nose for boards.

At the beginning of the ’25 draft cycle, Queen was, generally speaking, projected as a mid-first-rounder. But over the last two months, it seems that the chances of him falling out of the lottery are slim-to-none. Actually, none-to-none.

Jase Richardson, G, Michigan State

The son of former Slam Dunk Contest champ Jason Richardson is, like his dad, a sick athlete. But unlike his 6’6” father, Jase stands a scootch under 6’1” in stocking feet, which will likely have him falling into the latter half of the first round.

Thing is, he’s been comped to fellow semi-undersized dudes like Monta Ellis, Derrick White, and Fred VanVleet. If he falls to, say, pick 20 and turns into some iteration of any of those three, there’ll be ten or so teams who’ll be kicking themselves.

Danny Wolf, C, Michigan

Speaking of nifty comps, scouts see the 6’11” former Wolverine’s game similar to Al Horford’s and Lauri Markkanen’s, both of whom were lottery picks, and both of whom have always been solid, if not spectacular contributors.

Wolf has a nice touch from outside, decent handles, sneaky hops, and a non-stop motor. He’ll be an absolute irritant, the kind of hustle machine his team’s fans will love and opposing fans will despise.