The first wave of invitees to the 2025 NBA Draft is here.
Thirteen players received formal invitations on Tuesday to attend the draft and sit in the green room later this month at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. Among that group, obviously, is former Duke star and presumed No. 1 overall pick Copper Flagg.
Also receiving invitations are Dylan Harper, Ace Bailey, VJ Edgecombe, Tre Johnson, Khaman Maluach, Jeremiah Fears, Kon Knueppel, Kasparas Jakučionis, Egor Demin, Carter Bryant, Derik Queen and Asa Newell, per the report. Another 11 invitations are expected to be sent out in the near future.
Players who attend the draft are allowed to invite six people to sit with them at their table, which will be located in front of the NBA Draft podium in the arena. While an invitation is no guarantee by any means, receiving one is generally considered a good sign for a player when it comes to their draft stock. Of the 13 players who have been invited, nine of them are projected to be lottery picks in the latest mock draft from Yahoo Sports’ Kevin O’Connor. All 13 are safely projected to go in the first round.
Flagg has long been considered the favorite to go No. 1 overall in the draft later this month after his lone season with the Blue Devils, where he averaged 19.2 points and 7.5 rebounds while helping them reach the Final Four. The 18-year-old also earned consensus National Player of the Year honors.
The Dallas Mavericks, just months removed from the turmoil that came after trading away star Luka Dončić, won the NBA Draft lottery for the first time in franchise history. They had just a 1.8% chance to do so. The Mavericks and Flagg have a workout set for next week, and neither team has another workout on the books before the draft. All signs are pointing toward the Mavericks selecting Flagg first.
The first round of the NBA Draft is set for June 25. This is the second year where the draft is split up into two days.
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