NBA mock draft 2025: AI draft predictions for all 30 first-round picks
NBA mock draft 2025: AI draft predictions for all 30 first-round picks
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2025 NBA Draft Combine winners: Raynaud, Lendeborg and Byrd
These 2025 NBA draft prospects are the biggest winners from the NBA Draft Combine
There appears to be very little mystery this year at the top of the 2025 NBA draft. The assumption is Duke's Cooper Flagg will be the No. 1 selection, even if the Dallas Mavericks were to make another shocking trade and deal the pick they won in last week's NBA draft lottery. Artificial intelligence has picked up on that sense of certainty ahead of next month's event at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
While AI predictions for some prospects vary from the most influential NBA mock drafts, the projection for Flagg aligned with conventional thinking when USA TODAY Sports asked Microsoft Copilot to run a simulation of the 2025 NBA draft first round based on team needs, player rankings and draft order. The prospects selected after him, however, is where the AI and draft experts began to diverge
The simulation, for instance, was a little higher on Maryland's Derik Queen than most mock drafts and a little lower on Oklahoma guard Jeremiah Fears. It had Georgia's Asa Newell, Saint Joseph's Rasheer Fleming and Israeli guard Ben Saraf as top-20 picks when most don't and predicted others expecting to go in the first round to slide. It appears, at the very least, to be a better representation than earlier attempts to get AI predictions for this year's NBA draft. Maybe the NBA draft combine helped clear things up (and led to more published mock drafts).
Here's a breakdown of the 2025 NBA draft first-round picks made by Microsoft Copilot AI, as well as how to watch next month when the league's teams gather in Brooklyn to make their selections:
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NBA draft 2025: AI predictions for every first round pick
Dallas Mavericks: F Cooper Flagg, Duke San Antonio Spurs: G Dylan Harper, Rutgers Philadelphia 76ers: G V.J. Edgecombe, Baylor Charlotte Hornets: F Ace Bailey, Rutgers Utah Jazz: G Tre Johnson, Texas Washington Wizards: F Derik Queen, Maryland New Orleans Pelicans: F Kon Kneuppel, Duke Brooklyn Nets: G Kasparas Jakucionis, Illinois Toronto Raptors: C Khaman Maluach, Duke Houston Rockets: G Jase Richardson, Michigan State Portland Trail Blazers: G Jeremiah Fears, Oklahoma Chicago Bulls: F Asa Newell, Georgia Atlanta Hawks: F Noa Essengue, Ratiopharm Ulm San Antonio Spurs: F Liam McNeeley, UConn Oklahoma City Thunder: F Connor Murray-Broyles, South Carolina Orlando Magic: G Egor Demin, BYU Minnesota Timberwolves: G Ben Saraf, Raiopharm Ulm Washington Wizards: Thomas Sorber, Georgetown Brooklyn Nets: F Rasheer Fleming, Saint Joseph's Miami Heat: F Carter Bryant, Arizona Utah Jazz: G Nolan Troare, Saint-Quentin Atlanta Hawks: F Yaxel Landeborg, UAB Indiana Pacers: F Isaiah Evans, Duke Oklahoma City Thunder: G Will Riley, Illinois Orlando Magic: F Alex Toohey, Gonzaga Brooklyn Nets: F Drake Powell, North Carolina Brooklyn Nets: G/F Dink Pate, G League Ignite Boston Celtics: F/C Danny Wolf, Michigan Phoenix Suns: F Alex Karaban, UConn Los Angeles Clippers: G Hunter Sallis, Wake Forest
When is the 2025 NBA draft
The 2025 NBA draft is scheduled to take place over two days, with the first round scheduled for Wednesday, June 25 beginning at 7 p.m. ET and the second round slated to happen on Thursday, June 26.
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