2025 NBA Draft Grades Second Round
With the 2025 NBA Draft officially in the books, let's grade every team's draft pick focusing on the longer term!
Introduction
With the 2025 NBA Draft officially in the books, let's grade every team's draft pick, focusing on the longer term and immediate role impact.
Rankings
31. Phoenix Suns — A-
Rasheer Fleming (#13, Saint Joseph's): Junior, 6'9"
The Suns have enough depth among their guards and centers. Therefore, they made a fantastic decision by adding defensive versatility in addition to Ryan Dunn last year. Fleming is a great athlete who measured out great. His game is best as a four, while he’ll embrace defending against a three as well. Role versatility is vital in roster construction, and Phoenix has shown why they traded up to pick first in the second round.
32. Orlando Magic — B+
Noah Penda (#93, Le Mans): 2005, 6'8"
A similar story. Orlando traded up to get #32 and adds to their combination of defensive versatility and plus-positional size for all spots on the floor. Many NBA front offices value experience in Europe, especially among team-leading players. Penda has had a productive season after withdrawing at the deadline last year. Penda brings consistent high motor, screening, and good ball skills to add to the Magic’s need to improve their offensive rating.
33. Charlotte Hornets — B
Sion James (#14, Duke): Junior, 6'6"
Winning players matter. Sion James has a scalable role after his four good years at Tulane, where he led the team. This is a good combo pick with Kon Knueppel, as Sion James’ consistent offense on a smaller scale while bringing vital versatility as a complementary guard/wing helps him to play a role immediately. The Hornets need experience. Helping to lead the group will be the role he’s drafted for early in the second round.
34. Charlotte Hornets — A-
Ryan Kalkbrenner (#11, Creighton): Senior, 7'1"
After trading away Mark Williams, it was almost certain Charlotte would take a center early in the second round. Kalkbrenner will have to battle with Jusuf Nurkic on who gets the starting job. As a four-time Defensive Player of the Year in the Big East, Kalkbrenner is an experienced floor-stretcher who simply doesn’t foul. The Hornets needed an improvement for their defensive rating and got a stud in the former Creighton star.
35. Philadelphia 76ers — B
Johni Broome (#4, Auburn): Senior, 6'10"
Broome was in contention for National Player of the Year after a historic season with Auburn. The Sixers add another dynamic forward to the mix after drafting Adem Bona last year. Broome has a scalable game and will impact the game with his brute strength, toughness, and footwork inside the lane. The adjustment to the NBA will be easier as he’ll have a path to play consistent minutes, something he’s accustomed to throughout his entire collegiate career.
36. Los Angeles Lakers — A
Adou Thiero (#3, Arkansas): Junior, 6'6"
What a homerun swing. Thiero was one of my favorite prospects to be picked between 21 and 30. His physical attributes and potential are off the charts. However, a constantly changing body and his injuries slowed his development in college. The Lakers have no pressure in developing him, as they can afford to send him to the G League while letting him battle for spot minutes. I can see Thiero as a rotational player for the next season.
37. Detroit Pistons — A-
Chaz Lanier (#2, Tennessee): Senior, 6'5"
The Pistons are in an interesting position. When looking at their roster from three years ago, they barely had any shooters on the floor. They are addressing that need now, and their success on that end brought them immediate success this past season. Chaz Lanier is labeled as a shooter, but his ability to create off the dribble, shoot threes in volume off the dribble, and run around screens and shoot gives him a clear role. Detroit wanted him badly and got a rotational piece who’s ready to help right away.
38. Indiana Pacers — B
Kam Jones (#1, Marquette): Senior, 6'4"
Jones stays within the state and gives Indiana a temporary solution in covering the point guard duties while Haliburton is recovering from his unfortunate injury. Jones’ biggest leap as a senior was taking over the role of point guard at Marquette. He’s one of the best players so far, with a clear path to find himself a role in the rotation long term. But he must prove himself without Haliburton in his rookie year.
39. Toronto Raptors — B+
Alijah Martin (#15, Florida): Senior, 6'2"
The Raptors had their focus on continuing to build their much-improved defense from the second half of the season. This draft pick makes sense as they are replacing Davion Mitchell’s duties as a point-of-attack defender whose job is to make open shots and create offense out of closeouts.
Martin is one of the best guard-stoppers in this class. His thick frame and length help him defend against some wings as well. The Raptors are adding a cheap contract to the mix with a clear role. Going for experience instead of swinging for the fences shows their focus on trying to get to the playoffs this season.
40. New Orleans Pelicans — B-
Micah Peavy (#5, Georgetown): Senior, 6'8"
I don’t like the term ‘3-and-D’, but that’s Peavy in a nutshell. He’s a fantastic team defender with proven value in the pick-and-roll. The jumper was the inconsistent factor throughout his career, but that’s where he improved at Georgetown. Peavy joins a large group of wings in New Orleans and has the chance to stick and land an end-of-the-bench role with them.
41. Phoenix Suns — C+
Koby Brea (#4, Kentucky): Senior, 6'7"
Brea is the best shooter in college basketball. It’s not even close. However, the Suns are getting a one-dimensional player with very limited defensive qualities. If the jumper doesn’t fall, Brea has zero to no options to impact the game. Regardless, that’s fixable to a degree, as he’s a young senior who the Suns can still develop. The shot is clear, but the rest is still so uncertain.
42. Sacramento Kings — A-
Maxime Raynaud (#42, Stanford): Senior, 7'1"
I had Raynaud as a top-20 pick on my Big Board. He’s a true self-creating seven-footer whose archetype is one of the most sought-after ones in the NBA. If Cooper Flagg doesn’t exist, he wins ACC Player of the Year. His game is built on skill and continuity. Sacramento didn’t have to move far to scout him, as Raynaud comes over with a clear chance to play serious minutes at center: a win-win situation.
43. Washington Wizards — A-
Jamir Watkins (#1, Florida St.): Senior, 6'7"
Watkins has shown fantastic defense at the NBA Draft Combine, and that’s his primary role in Washington. His speed and burst make him a threat to get downhill easily. His role as a modern slasher with playmaking and scoring duties adds to what the Wizards need. There is some overlap with Will Riley, but considering how much Dawkins values positional size, Watkins will play both guard and wing roles. Fantastic value pick.
44. Oklahoma City Thunder — B-
Brooks Barnhizer (#13, Northwestern): Senior, 6'6"
Barnhizer is a classic case of the numbers not reflecting his game. If you go by the statistics, he’s an underwhelming, productive player. However, he had to carry out too many of the duties at Northwestern, a program that struggled early in the season. Regardless, Barnhizer is someone I held a lot of stock in. He’s a classic Thunder pick with a plus-sized wingspan and positional size. His two-way deal with them opens up room to play spot minutes, as the Thunder will construct their roster to give rest to their rotation in the regular season.
45. Minnesota Timberwolves — B-
Rocco Zikarsky (#11, Brisbane): 2006, 7'2"
Zikarsky is interesting. He’s a clear long-term bet for Minnesota, which is betting on multiple horses after drafting Joan Beringer in the first round. The Aussie has fantastic physical tools, but played behind one of the best fives in the NBL. The lack of opportunity to play hurt his draft stock throughout the season. In the minutes that he played, his dominance against his age group was nowhere to be seen. There’s potential to be a rotational five in the NBA, but it might take a while. Regardless, Minnesota has proven they are prepared to develop prospects via the G League, and this will be no different for Zikarsky.
46. Boston Celtics — B
Amari Williams (#22, Kentucky): Senior, 7'0"
The Celtics traded away Porzingis and addressed their need for skill and extra passing from the interior. Williams is not the floor-stretcher they need, but his combination of physical strength and court vision makes him a good connective five who’ll help improve the margins for error with his rebounding. The Celtics address their need for depth with this pick.
47. Milwaukee Bucks — B-
Bogoljub Markovic (Mega Basket): 2005, 6’11"
Another skilled forward to a team that’s competing in the East. However, despite Markovic being an NBA-caliber offensive player, the lack of team defense and rotations doesn’t help him to play minutes soon. Regardless, there’s potential to untap for Milwaukee, as I expect them to play Markovic with the Wisconsin Herd for his rookie season. One of the takeaways is that passing and skill are valuable traits, but the game goes too fast for Markovic often. Therefore, he needs to continue to develop.
48. Memphis Grizzlies — A
Javon Small (#7, West Virginia): Senior, 6'2"
Small is this year’s Jaylen Wells for Memphis. I’ll stand behind that take without any hesitation. He’s one of the best guards in college basketball, and the fit with Memphis is seamless. He’ll help take away pressure from Morant as well. There’s room to play serious minutes while Small brings natural toughness as a part of his game. The classic case of undersized, older guards led to him slipping on draft boards, but this is a first-round caliber player Memphis brought in.
49. Cleveland Cavaliers — C+
Tyrese Proctor (#5, Duke): Junior, 6'6"
Proctor can fill the gap that Ty Jerome might have caused after that last playoff run. The Cavaliers need reliable shooting and positional size. Proctor offers both. He doesn’t play to his best capabilities with the ball in his hands. Therefore, the Cavaliers must find a way to help him grow his game away from the ball and develop into a volume shooter in the next few years.
50. Los Angeles Clippers — B+
Kobe Sanders (#8, Nevada): Senior, 6'9"
The Clippers need another guard to complement James Harden. Sanders has had a fantastic summer. He stood out at the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament and played himself on NBA radars. As a jumbo initiator, Sanders brings playmaking, downhill slashing, and lead guard responsibilities. There’s a seamless fit with their vertical lob threat, Niederhause,r who was taken at #30.
51. New York Knicks — B
Mohamed Diawara (Cholet): 2005, 6'8"
This will be a developmental year for Dadiet, their first-rounder of last season. They now add Diawara to the mix, who brings a combination of top athleticism, physicality, and the mold to grow into a combo forward in the next few years. His game is raw, but the athleticism and footwork are undeniable. He’ll spend a lot of time with the Westchester Knicks and should be a long-term piece, similar to Miles McBride, who spent his first few years in New York.
52. Golden State Warriors — B
Alex Toohey (#22, Sydney): 2004, 6'7"
Toohey fits the timeline of the Warriors. Their glaring need was a wing who plays a limited role in terms of ball touches. Toohey found ways to continuously get better. He’s a good athlete with a great game as a cutter and play-finisher. His game is built to adjust fast to a higher pace, whereas his jumper fastly improved. That’s a part of his game that will help him to stay on the floor in the NBA. Defensively, his rotations are consistent, which is another factor that’ll earn him minutes early in his career.
23. Utah Jazz — A-
John Tonje (#9, Wisconsin): Senior, 6'5"
Tonje is a stud. He’s a sixth-year college player and immediately is one of the oldest players in Utah. He’ll bring that extra energy in competing with their young group for a long-term role. Tonje is a strong, tough, and gritty player with a reliable three-pointer. His game is scalable, and therefore, it fits what Utah needs from its wing. He’ll bring an instant spark of offense, while the maturity of his game will translate on defense. He’ll have a clear path to play good minutes and contend for the All-Rookie Second Team.
54. Indiana Pacers — N/A
Taelon Peter (#2, Liberty): Senior, 6'4"
No take. I didn’t see this player ever play. But these picks make it so much more fun to see how much more detailed NBA front offices have built their list. I look forward to seeing him in the Summer League.
55. Chicago Bulls — A
Lachlan Olbrich (#30, Illawarra): 2003, 6'10"
The Bulls needed a five, and Olbrich is one of the skilled centers in this draft. He’s experienced and brings over an NBA-ready game where he’ll feast off the gravity of others. He’s an excellent screener, while there’s room to grow his role in the next few years. Despite being selected so late in the draft, I expect Olbrich to play spot minutes at worst for them.
56. Golden State Warriors — B
Will Richard (#5, Florida): Senior, 6'4"
The National Champion is the ultimate glue guy to add to the depth chart. His multipositional defense and NBA-ready body give him a decent floor. The Warriors need to surround their core with defenders, and Richard could be one of those names. I expect him to have his fair share of games for Santa Cruz as well.
57. Boston Celtics — N/A
Max Shulga (#11, VCU): Senior, 6'5"
Shulga is a name I had on my watchlist for the entire season, but doing this as a hobby, there are always some players I simply can’t find the time to watch. Shulga is one of them.
58. Cleveland Cavaliers — B+
Saliou Niang (#7, Trento): 2004, 6’8"
The Cavaliers aren’t over Isaac Okoro yet. They drafted the defensive specialist Saliou Niang, who has a clear role and defensive qualities to stick around in the NBA. But, and this is a big but, he must develop an offensive game. Among all unknown international players, he’s by far my favorite. Here’s what I wrote about him earlier.
59. Memphis Grizzlies — A
Jahmai Mashack (#15, Tennessee): Senior, 6'4"
Mashack is the best perimeter defender in college basketball. Hands down. He is the last article of 120+ that I wrote in the last thirteen months. Mashack brings that ‘F-you’ attitude while there’s a clear role to grow his game as a spot-up shooter and active cutter. He’s set to succeed in the NBA as the Grizzlies’ next rotational player that no one saw coming.
On Taelon Peter: Guy is a bucket —led Liberty in scoring despite playing off the bench all year, has a 40 inch vertical (and is a 2-time state high jump champion!), and ranked in the 99th percentile for spot up shooting last season. Literally above 90th percentile in all offensive tracking metrics but one and is serviceable enough on defense. I’m a big fan of the guy but even I didn’t expect him to get drafted! Good for him!