2025 NBA Draft

[SpursBills]

30/4/3 on 8/12 shooting (3/4 from 3) and 11/13 from the line today in a win over #24 Michigan, including a game winning 4 point play at the end. Just turned 18 and single handedly took over in the second half against a top 25 team

Dude is the goods, but probably just played himself out of the spurs range. Bigger De'aaron Fox with 3 point shooting stroke

I'll continue to bang this drum if he continues his hot start, but right now in my opinion Jeremiah Fears is by far the best player that would potentially be available in the spurs' range. He's mocked anywhere from late lottery to late first, but to me he belongs top 5 behind Harper and right around where everyone has Jakucionis with true two-way star potential. I can probably talk myself into him at 3 behind Harper and Flagg honestly.

If the spurs are looking for another combo guard ball-handler or 3rd guard, there are some excellent options this draft. Boogie Fland is kind of Dillingham redux where he's a Calipari guard, great shotmaker and passes well but can't really finish at the rim. Jace Richardson is this year's Sheppard as a high efficiency low usage role playing combo guard who always seems to make the right decision. Labaron Philon is a little bit like a smaller Castle as a really well rounded combo guard who's solid in most aspects and a great perimeter defender. However, none of them has the star potential of Fears.

1. Frame - per Givony, he's grown 3 inches and 30 pounds in the last 2 years. He's listed at 6'4" by Oklahoma and looks like he has decent length. He's got a good frame that looks like it can continue to add muscle. He's supposed to be a HS senior (about Flagg's age) and he's still skinny, so he's still likely early in his physical development. Regardless, by the time he physically develops, he'll be big enough to likely hold up on a switch and not completely die like some of the smaller guards from last year.

2. Skills - kid's got some dirty handles. Not as shifty as Dillingham, not as fast as Fox, not as strong/explosive as Dennis Smith Jr. But he's smooth and above average in all 3 of those things. Lightning quick crossover and can get into the paint in the blink of an eye.

3. Defense - comes and goes, but he's definitely flashed the ability to lock in as a man defender; haven't seen enough to really make a judgement on his team defense and awareness. 5% STL rate is bound to come down, but he's shown excellent awareness and potential on that end.

4. Numbers - 30+ AST%, 4+ STL%, 50% free throw rate on 30+ Usage for a freshman who just turned 18 is absolutely nutty and borderline unheard-of. More importantly, his numbers clearly paint a picture of what his tape shows - a guy who can relentlessly get into the paint and finish at a good rate while there (64% at the rim), and draw fouls at an extremely high rate. He's putting up similar and better numbers relative to guys like Fox, DSJ, and Jaden Ivey, except he's 1-2 years younger and probably physically less developed. Additionally, his rim pressure synergizes with his frame. He's bigger and probably longer than the aforementioned 3 with the likelihood of getting stronger in the coming years, giving his rim pressure a higher chance to translate.

5. Team success - Oklahoma was expected to be ranked around 50-60 preseason and now finds itself ranked top 15. Fears doesn't seem to be just putting up empty stats; his numbers are actually translating to team success above what was originally expected

6. Weaknesses - turnovers, and 3 point shooting. Decision making is probably my biggest worry with him, but again given his youth and inexperience, it's something that I can give him a pass for. Regarding 3 point shooting, he does have certain shooting indicators. The 3s that he's made have all looked smooth and in rhythm, including a couple step backs and pull ups. Most importantly, he shoots mid 80s from the FT line indicating decent touch. This is something that we don't typically see when we look at prior rim-pressure prospects (Fox, DSJ, Ivey were all mid to high 70s). Given the variance of 3 point shooting at a young age and his shooting indicators, I think that Fears has a better chance than most of developing his shooting. If he does, you are looking at an athletic 3 level scorer with decent size and a good frame. That's a star.

7. Personality - this guy seems confident as and doesn't shrink from the moment. Will need to know more about his work ethic, but his rapid improvement from a relative unknown in high school to now indicates some degree of work ethic and ability to improve his game.


Many on this board have put forth the idea that this team still lacks rim pressure, an assertion that I agree with. Wemby is leaning into shooting, Vassell is at his core a jump shooter, and Castle as impressed as I've been with him does not have that ability to collapse a defense. I was hoping Topic could be that guy last year, but unfortunately he had his own warts (abysmal defense, questionable compe ion, below the rim athleticism, questionable physical dimensions) that came to the forefront on further inspection. I think that while Fears does not demonstrate the court vision and awareness that Topic did, he also is strong where Topic is weak and I have fewer concerns about his strengths translating. As the spurs are unlikely to be in position to draft Harper and even Jakucionis, Fears is the best chance that they have of drafting a two way impact player with star upside as a scorer and ball-handler. Hopefully the rest of the nba doesn't catch on, but at least 10 games into the season, he seems to be a top 5 pick hiding in plain sight.

[cutewizard]

Have not been paying attention. Has anyone mentioned Danny Wolf yet. Not bad for a 20 year old, 7-ft guard.

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Wow, this is cool man!

Thanks! i'll try to find more stuff about him

[cutewizard]

Woooooooooooooooooooooow, this is one talented being!

Point Center/Forward! He could anchor the second unit ...........

[cutewizard]

[cutewizard]

[cutewizard]

[jesterbobman]

That boy good.

Fears' movement reminds me of Shai a bit - a bit jerky jerky, but he's on balance at all times and then he can take advantage.

I think the only reason he's not much higher on mocks now is that he wasn't expected to be ready this year given his age, so he was on the radar for 2026. I don't think he'll be in school for two years. That initial thinking can colour opinions and people get anchored to a previous evaluation.

Vecenie didn't have him high (not in his top 50, therefore not on big board as a freshman)
Tankathon he's not even on the site
No Ceilings had him #28 in their recent mock

It seems like he's the type of guy who will go higher. 18 year olds putting up very good statistical seasons are rare.

I think he might still be in the Spurs range as a late lottery pick, as other teams will value bigger bodies and judge that in the modern NBA you can't have too many two-way wings (I don't love Knuppel as a lottery pick, but I get he's potentially a big wing shooter), and picking a PG as depth might be frowned upon by Owners / fans, if Fears and their PG can't play together / there's a worry of having two PGs and having size issues defensively.

[Mr. Body]

Fears will go top ten, possibly higher.

[SpursBills]

With all this talk about De'aaron Fox lately, I wanted to explore another hypothetical. baseline_bum proposed a trade that would send Jeremy Sochan and a first to the nets for Cam Johnson. As a big fan of Jeremy, I'd be against trading him away for another high level role player at first glance. That being said, I wanted to see if there was someone attainable for the Spurs that could make up for at least some of what he brings. Turns out, there might be in this year's draft.

First, let's talk about what Sochan brings. He's 6'8-6'9" who's very quick and agile for a forward, has excellent defensive instincts. Moving forward, I expect him to bring interior toughness, rebounding, elite perimeter defense especially against big wings, connector-type passing, enough ball handling ability to attack closeouts, as well as an edge personality wise. His weaknesses, aside from the obvious jump shooting concerns, involve his lack of secondary rim protection, a tendency to get bodied by bigger players, and a dependence on his teammates to get him points. He can differentiate himself from other defense-first guys due to his combination of ball handling and connective passing, which is something you don't get as much of in pure wing stoppers like Jaden McDaniels or Tari Eason.

Sochan's draft profile actually predicted the kind of player he'd turn into. He fits the "Draymond" archetype - big player with good stock numbers (3.2 BLK%, 2.9 STL%), good offensive rebounder (8.9 OREB%), passing potential (12.1 AST%). I'm a fan of players with this combination - first proposed by https://x.com/100guaranteed, it suggests high functional athleticism + feel predicting future precocious skill development.



Unsurprisingly, even at age 21, he's turned into a premier perimeter defender but who predictably still struggles with his shot.

In this draft, the closest player to the "Draymond" archetype and who can potentially provide a lot of what Sochan currently provides is Collin Murray-Boyles.

I first started paying attention to CMB last year after this ridiculous block https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3PGaNB6bQ8
He came out of nowhere last year as an 18 year old freshman to play a key part in South Carolina way overachieving and making it to the tournament. He's a burly undersized forward 6'7" with a 7'+ wingspan who's an incredibly versatile defender and a strong interior scorer with a limited jump shot. So far this season his numbers (as well as his size and build) are eerily similar to sop re Draymond as they both appear to be around 6'7" 230+ lb forwards with 7'+ wingspans:



His passing out of the post is excellent on tape and he seems to have better feel and touch than Sochan, even last year as a freshman. He averaged better numbers across the board when you compare their freshman seasons. He's fast enough to defend on the perimeter and strong enough to not get bodied inside. His post game is excellent although we will see if that translates in the pros given his height. On some of South Carolina's defensive possessions he's literally all over the floor, bumping his man off his spots, cutting off drives the baseline, coming over for a help-side block.

With regards to his role on the spurs, I would probably not spend a good pick on him if Sochan is around as their skillsets are too redundant. However, if Sochan were to be traded for, say, a tall wing shooter, he would be almost ideal to play the "mobile center" role in a lineup with an attacking guard, secondary creator, and 2 supersized wing shooters. What he potentially gives up in quickness on the perimeter he makes up for in strength and potential secondary rim protection. Additionally, since it seems like his shooting is very slow to develop, I think that most teams would be reluctant to spend a high lottery pick on him due to concerns that his game is antiquated and size concerns. However, his intelligence, feel, and athleticism make him a good bet to succeed moving forward. I can almost guarantee that Presti is all over this kid as he would be an almost glove-in-hand long term fit next to Chet however his fit on other teams may be more questionable. Fortunately, Wemby's evolution as a high volume shooter provides an avenue to draft this kid whose game probably best resembles Paul Millsap but whose numbers suggest he also has a certain amount of Draymond equity.

Even though I am loathe to trade Sochan, bum's trade does make some sense to me. I have more faith in CMB turning into a reasonable replacement for Sochan than I do of a late lottery wing this year turning into someone with Cam Johnson's gravity and game. To be fair, Jeremy has certain characteristics about him beyond the numbers that potentially predicts success. He's a somewhat dirty player who's willing to get under opponents' skin, and has been shown to be wiling to do whatever is necessary to succeed as evidenced by his free throw form. Both of these are distinct advantages over CMB, who just seems like a normal person and therefore may not be as likely to succeed. It's a dicey proposal but CMB being there potentially softens the blow for me a little bit. Let's see if he continues to improve throughout the season.

[Mr. Body]

Sochan and a first for Cam Johnson. You should be committed.

[cutewizard]

I like us to have our own Draymond, preferably with a light shooting touch

[cutewizard]

With all this talk about De'aaron Fox lately, I wanted to explore another hypothetical. baseline_bum proposed a trade that would send Jeremy Sochan and a first to the nets for Cam Johnson. As a big fan of Jeremy, I'd be against trading him away for another high level role player at first glance. That being said, I wanted to see if there was someone attainable for the Spurs that could make up for at least some of what he brings. Turns out, there might be in this year's draft.

First, let's talk about what Sochan brings. He's 6'8-6'9" who's very quick and agile for a forward, has excellent defensive instincts. Moving forward, I expect him to bring interior toughness, rebounding, elite perimeter defense especially against big wings, connector-type passing, enough ball handling ability to attack closeouts, as well as an edge personality wise. His weaknesses, aside from the obvious jump shooting concerns, involve his lack of secondary rim protection, a tendency to get bodied by bigger players, and a dependence on his teammates to get him points. He can differentiate himself from other defense-first guys due to his combination of ball handling and connective passing, which is something you don't get as much of in pure wing stoppers like Jaden McDaniels or Tari Eason.

Sochan's draft profile actually predicted the kind of player he'd turn into. He fits the "Draymond" archetype - big player with good stock numbers (3.2 BLK%, 2.9 STL%), good offensive rebounder (8.9 OREB%), passing potential (12.1 AST%). I'm a fan of players with this combination - first proposed by https://x.com/100guaranteed, it suggests high functional athleticism + feel predicting future precocious skill development.



Unsurprisingly, even at age 21, he's turned into a premier perimeter defender but who predictably still struggles with his shot.

In this draft, the closest player to the "Draymond" archetype and who can potentially provide a lot of what Sochan currently provides is Collin Murray-Boyles.

I first started paying attention to CMB last year after this ridiculous block https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3PGaNB6bQ8
He came out of nowhere last year as an 18 year old freshman to play a key part in South Carolina way overachieving and making it to the tournament. He's a burly undersized forward 6'7" with a 7'+ wingspan who's an incredibly versatile defender and a strong interior scorer with a limited jump shot. So far this season his numbers (as well as his size and build) are eerily similar to sop re Draymond as they both appear to be around 6'7" 230+ lb forwards with 7'+ wingspans:



His passing out of the post is excellent on tape and he seems to have better feel and touch than Sochan, even last year as a freshman. He averaged better numbers across the board when you compare their freshman seasons. He's fast enough to defend on the perimeter and strong enough to not get bodied inside. His post game is excellent although we will see if that translates in the pros given his height. On some of South Carolina's defensive possessions he's literally all over the floor, bumping his man off his spots, cutting off drives the baseline, coming over for a help-side block.

With regards to his role on the spurs, I would probably not spend a good pick on him if Sochan is around as their skillsets are too redundant. However, if Sochan were to be traded for, say, a tall wing shooter, he would be almost ideal to play the "mobile center" role in a lineup with an attacking guard, secondary creator, and 2 supersized wing shooters. What he potentially gives up in quickness on the perimeter he makes up for in strength and potential secondary rim protection. Additionally, since it seems like his shooting is very slow to develop, I think that most teams would be reluctant to spend a high lottery pick on him due to concerns that his game is antiquated and size concerns. However, his intelligence, feel, and athleticism make him a good bet to succeed moving forward. I can almost guarantee that Presti is all over this kid as he would be an almost glove-in-hand long term fit next to Chet however his fit on other teams may be more questionable. Fortunately, Wemby's evolution as a high volume shooter provides an avenue to draft this kid whose game probably best resembles Paul Millsap but whose numbers suggest he also has a certain amount of Draymond equity.

Even though I am loathe to trade Sochan, bum's trade does make some sense to me. I have more faith in CMB turning into a reasonable replacement for Sochan than I do of a late lottery wing this year turning into someone with Cam Johnson's gravity and game. To be fair, Jeremy has certain characteristics about him beyond the numbers that potentially predicts success. He's a somewhat dirty player who's willing to get under opponents' skin, and has been shown to be wiling to do whatever is necessary to succeed as evidenced by his free throw form. Both of these are distinct advantages over CMB, who just seems like a normal person and therefore may not be as likely to succeed. It's a dicey proposal but CMB being there potentially softens the blow for me a little bit. Let's see if he continues to improve throughout the season.

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Very good post good Sir.....

[cutewizard]

[onechance87]

Sochan and a first for Cam Johnson. You should be committed.

would be down

[Dejounte]

I’ve been a fan of CMB since last year. The main difference between him and Sochan is Sochan’s ability to keep up with guards on the perimeter. It is really unparalleled and not even Draymond in his prime did that. I don’t recall many players with Sochan’s size in the history of the game that could consistently switch and guard small players. It’s special, tbh.

[Mr. Body]

would be down

Yeah because Cam Johnson is this site's current John Collins.

[SpursBills]

I’ve been a fan of CMB since last year. The main difference between him and Sochan is Sochan’s ability to keep up with guards on the perimeter. It is really unparalleled and not even Draymond in his prime did that. I don’t recall many players with Sochan’s size in the history of the game that could consistently switch and guard small players. It’s special, tbh.

Agree with this completely. I think CMB is probably a better interior defender and gives you better secondary rim protection whereas Sochan is better on the perimeter. Do those two offset given CMB's likelihood of being a better passer? I don't know, but of all the guys in this particular draft I think he probably comes closest to reproducing current Sochan.

[onechance87]

Yeah because Cam Johnson is this site's current John Collins.

just think hes the best fit next fit next to wemby compared to our other fowards.

[exstatic]

Agree with this completely. I think CMB is probably a better interior defender and gives you better secondary rim protection whereas Sochan is better on the perimeter. Do those two offset given CMB's likelihood of being a better passer? I don't know, but of all the guys in this particular draft I think he probably comes closest to reproducing current Sochan.

Yeah, but you’d be starting over in the development cycle, marking time until his year 3 breakout in 2027-2028.

[Dejounte]

just think hes the best fit next fit next to wemby compared to our other fowards.

I don’t know how you can watch these games and think we need to remove our only interior player (since Wemby has established that at least half his game will be on the perimeter). It appears you only want perimeter players around Wemby, which will lead to us being massively outrebounded since there will be no interior players who box out, play physical, or rebound. You’ve seen this team have bad losses, you’ll probably see even worse ones if you replace an interior guy with another shooter in the lineup.

[Mr. Body]

Suddenly a guy who hasn't played a lick of NBA basketball is better than a guy turning into a really solid pro.

Never change, ST.

[rascal]

He can easily replace Sochan. He looks to be quicker and with a longer reach, more athletic. Plays tough defense and looks smooth finishing around the rim.

Agree Spurs should trade Sochan for a wing that can shoot and draft this guy with their pick if they fall outside the top 10.

[rascal]

Suddenly a guy who hasn't played a lick of NBA basketball is better than a guy turning into a really solid pro.

Never change, ST.

You can say the same for any player entering next year's draft. You wouldn't trade Sochan for the top pick in next year's draft?

[exstatic]

You can say the same for any player entering next year's draft. You wouldn't trade Sochan for the top pick in next year's draft?

That’s not even close to the discussion at hand. We’re talking about trading Sochan for some unnamed shooting wing, and basically starting over with CMB, and hoping he develops into a player as good as Sochan 2 1/2 years from now. He absolutely will not be as good as current Sochan from the get go.

[Mr. Body]

You can say the same for any player entering next year's draft. You wouldn't trade Sochan for the top pick in next year's draft?

For ColinTuckerBOyles or whatever the his name is? That's who you think the top pick is?

Is this site clinically insane?