2025 NBA Draft

[Dejounte]

Imo, the way mcneely scored those 30 plus points is the very definition of a clumsy scorer who wont be able to get those shots up against nba defenders

im going back and forth with who i want the spurs draft

-high upside two way player with freak physical attributes
-baller regardless of position
-bucket getter

the spurs get any one of these types and im happy

[Dejounte]

The folks who want asa are going to be the same ones crying about how the starting lineup doesnt have any shooters tbh cant believe we’re on this same road again

[Uriel]

Where would Castle rank as a prospect if he were in this year's draft?

[Mr. Body]

Newell's 3p% is sub.300 but his shooting form is better than Sochan's and he can run on a break which works well with Fox and Castle. He's also a good offensive rebounder, Sochan is not, Sochan doesn't even know how to get good position for offensive rebounds.

When the ball goes to Sochan the offense goes to a crawl.

He's awkward handling the basketball and is a poor passer. Sochan needs to be replaced in the starting lineup and moved to the bench. Asa Newell has a higher ceiling.

Comparing a guy playing in college to a guy playing in the NBA is just frankly idiotic.

[Mr. Body]

I was pretty strong on him early on, but his stats other than points are minuscule. Doesn’t rebound, doesn’t get to the line, doesn’t defend. He could drop.

I've generally not liked his mom scoring production either, but he has been getting better in that department.

[RC_Drunkford]

I like Demin and Fleming a lot more than Newell

[mo7888]

I like Demin and Fleming a lot more than Newell

Me too

[spurraider21]

Where would Castle rank as a prospect if he were in this year's draft?

you mean if we took last year's prospect and time traveled him to the present? or with what we've seen from castle as a rookie so far in mind?

[exstatic]

The folks who want asa are going to be the same ones crying about how the starting lineup doesnt have any shooters tbh cant believe we’re on this same road again

The one shooter that a lot of us like, you accused of scoring clumsily, so…

[scott]

New ESPN mock draft (Givony and Woo) has us taking Fears at #9 and something from France called Joan Beringer (C from Slovenian team Cedevita Olimpija) at #12. I don't think I've seen anyone talk about this kid. Anyone got thoughts on him? Maybe this is one for Bruno.

Here is ESPN's report:

12. San Antonio Spurs (via Atlanta)

Joan Beringer, C, Cedevita Olimpija (France)
Slovenia | TS%: 59.6%
Scouting report: Beringer has drawn increasingly significant crowds of NBA decision-makers in Slovenia. The 18-year-old has responded with some spectacular moments on the defensive end, proving to be one of the most versatile players in the class with his ability to cover ground on the perimeter, switch onto smaller players, and protect the rim, leading both the EuroCup and Adriatic League in block percentage. Playing basketball for only three years, Beringer had zero high-level experience coming into the season but is improving every week, giving him unlimited upside to grow into long term. -- Givony
NBA fit and intel: San Antonio owns this pick unprotected from Atlanta, originally acquiring it in the 2022 Dejounte Murray trade. Adding a high-upside young interior defender in Beringer, who could take on some responsibility in the paint and allow Victor Wembanyama to handle a more versatile defensive role, would give the Spurs a different dimension. Beringer's upside and ability to defend bigger bodies would make him an intriguing option as a young rim protector on the right timeline with the rest of the team's core players. -- Woo

And just for informational purposes, this mock has Tre Johnson going #11 to Houston and McNeeley going #13 to Atlanta. If the draft fell this way, I'd rather we just take those two guys.

Also, FYI, SpursTalk favorite Rasheer Fleming goes #28. Danny Wolfe goes #16. Most of the PFs that have been talked about as mid to late lottery go later than we've been discussing (CMB #18, Essengue #19, Newell #21, Karaban #29).

I know most folks don't put a lot of stock into ESPN for draft stuff, but this was certainly different and there were some names that I've not heard discussed all on this forum (and I consider this forum to be pretty damn sharp when it comes to prospect talk)

[scott]

Also, for those without ESPN+, they also have OKC taking Derik Queen @ #10, Hugo Gonzalez @ #15, and Newell @ #21. these ing Thunder man.

[ambchang]

Newell's 3p% is sub.300 but his shooting form is better than Sochan's and he can run on a break which works well with Fox and Castle. He's also a good offensive rebounder, Sochan is not, Sochan doesn't even know how to get good position for offensive rebounds.

When the ball goes to Sochan the offense goes to a crawl.

He's awkward handling the basketball and is a poor passer. Sochan needs to be replaced in the starting lineup and moved to the bench. Asa Newell has a higher ceiling.

WTF?

[RC_Drunkford]

New ESPN mock draft (Givony and Woo) has us taking Fears at #9 and something from France called Joan Beringer (C from Slovenian team Cedevita Olimpija) at #12. I don't think I've seen anyone talk about this kid. Anyone got thoughts on him? Maybe this is one for Bruno.

Here is ESPN's report:

And just for informational purposes, this mock has Tre Johnson going #11 to Houston and McNeeley going #13 to Atlanta. If the draft fell this way, I'd rather we just take those two guys.

Also, FYI, SpursTalk favorite Rasheer Fleming goes #28. Danny Wolfe goes #16. Most of the PFs that have been talked about as mid to late lottery go later than we've been discussing (CMB #18, Essengue #19, Newell #21, Karaban #29).

I know most folks don't put a lot of stock into ESPN for draft stuff, but this was certainly different and there were some names that I've not heard discussed all on this forum (and I consider this forum to be pretty damn sharp when it comes to prospect talk)

this guy has been mocked in the 2nd round tbh

[montgod]

Also, for those without ESPN+, they also have OKC taking Derik Queen @ #10, Hugo Gonzalez @ #15, and Newell @ #21. these ing Thunder man.

Dang, Queen has moved up that high?

[Bruno]

New ESPN mock draft (Givony and Woo) has us taking Fears at #9 and something from France called Joan Beringer (C from Slovenian team Cedevita Olimpija) at #12. I don't think I've seen anyone talk about this kid. Anyone got thoughts on him? Maybe this is one for Bruno.

I've talked about him a couple of weeks ago:

A player you haven't heard of and who will be likely drafted in the first round is french player Joan Beringer. He is currently #24 on Givony's big board.



The main thing about him is that he has played basketball for 3 and a half years. He barely knows how to play but he is true physical specimen (6'10/6'11" barefoot with a 7'4" wingspan and a great mobility/explosiveness) and is improving quickly.
Teams with multiple first round picks like OKC and Nets will surely use one of them on him. A very high risk and reward prospect.

A great article about him (in French):
https://www.bebasket.fr/joan-beringe...-de-quatre-ans

[Mr. Body]

A French player who doesn't know how to play basketball. Sounds like Tidjane!

People have been pointing out that Givony is strangely really pushing this guy.

Givony is the guy who weirdly slagged Castle relentlessly during the draft last year, claiming he watched him for an hour in shoot around and never saw him hit two in a row and other things.

He has weird agendas, imo, pretty typical of an ESPN dude. My guess is maybe just outright getting paid by agents or otherwise.

[Mr. Body]

Givony was wildly wrong about Castle, of course.

[spurraider21]

A French player who doesn't know how to play basketball. Sounds like Tidjane!

People have been pointing out that Givony is strangely really pushing this guy.

Givony is the guy who weirdly slagged Castle relentlessly during the draft last year, claiming he watched him for an hour in shoot around and never saw him hit two in a row and other things.

He has weird agendas, imo, pretty typical of an ESPN dude. My guess is maybe just outright getting paid by agents or otherwise.

Givony was wildly wrong about Castle, of course.

givony had the spurs taking castle at #4 and was correct

[Bruno]

A French player who doesn't know how to play basketball. Sounds like Tidjane!

Difference is Salaün played a lot of basketball before being drafted.

A good comparison for him (it is the one they made in the article I've linked) is Ian Mahinmi: a player with great physical tools, a good at ude/work ethic, who has just started to play basketball and is getting better very quickly.

[Bruno]

2 players higher in Givony's mock draft than other ones are Will Riley and Hugo Gonzalez.

Will Riley had a great start of the season, followed by two bad months but he is back at a very good level in the past 5 games. It's not a surprised to see him rising in mock drafts.

I know very little about Gonzalez. I'll need to watch more of him to get an opinion but his questionable jumpshot is quite an issue given Spurs lack of shooting.

[scott]

If the draft somehow fell exactly like this ESPN Mock and we took Tre Johnson and McNeeley, that would be pretty close to optimal for both their respective talent levels and our needs. I'd be extremely happy with that if we're picking 9 and 12. Only nitpick is that maybe instead of Liam we go for a little more size, but there are other ways to address that.

Taking a backup PG (Fears) and a backup (C) would seem... suboptimal to say the least, even before considering those two specific player's traits.

[Mr. Body]

givony had the spurs taking castle at #4 and was correct

Because eventually he has to go by final intel or lose whatever reputation he still has. Before, he was #1 in trying to wreck Castle's reputation for some reason. No one was dogging Castle more than he was. And, yes, he was wrong about it.

[Mr. Body]

Givony's tactics throughout the draft process seemed to be to plump Risacher at every turn and slag Castle. I don't remember him about the Kentucky guards.

[Mr. Body]

If the draft somehow fell exactly like this ESPN Mock and we took Tre Johnson and McNeeley, that would be pretty close to optimal for both their respective talent levels and our needs. I'd be extremely happy with that if we're picking 9 and 12. Only nitpick is that maybe instead of Liam we go for a little more size, but there are other ways to address that.

Taking a backup PG (Fears) and a backup (C) would seem... suboptimal to say the least, even before considering those two specific player's traits.

I'm unsure about Johnson and McNeeley both, but would be really happy with that result. I'd be okay with something like McNeeley and Queen. Although he's not a shotblocker, etc., Queen's profile and smarts are really intriguing as a swing.

[Uriel]

you mean if we took last year's prospect and time traveled him to the present? or with what we've seen from castle as a rookie so far in mind?

The latter.