The day has arrived for Jeremiah Fears.
Oklahoma's standout point guard is set to fulfill a lifelong dream Wednesday night, when he's set to be selected in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft. Fears, who led Oklahoma in scoring and assists this season while guiding the program back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2021, is widely expected to be a top-10 pick when the first round of the draft begins at 7 p.m. CT on ABC and ESPN, and he'll be in attendance at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, as one of the 24 prospects invited to the green room for the opening night of the draft.
The 6-foot-3 point guard is set to become the first OU player selected in the first round of the NBA Draft since Trae Young went eighth overall in the 2018 draft to the Atlanta Hawks. Like Young, Fears is a one-and-done prospect who spent a single season in Norman before declaring for the pros.
The 18-year-old Fears is the second-youngest player in this year's class—just behind presumptive No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg—after initially reclassifying from the 2025 class to enroll at Oklahoma a year ahead of schedule. The Joliet, Illinois, native made the most of his one year with the Sooners, averaging 17.1 points, 4.1 assists and 1.6 steals per game while also grabbing 4.1 rebounds per game and leading Oklahoma to its second consecutive 20-win season and a No. 9 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
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Fears' lone season at Oklahoma was among the best freshman campaigns in program history, as he ranked second among freshmen in school history in steals (56), made free throws (183) and free-throw attempts (215), fourth in points scored (581), fifth in points per game (17.1) and assists (140), as well as sixth in made field goals (180) and games started (31). The crafty playmaking lead guard — who posted a 31.5% usage rate, one of the tops in the country — was one of just three Power 4 conference players to average at least 17 points, four rebounds, four assists and 1.4 steals per game for the year, with Flagg and West Virginia's Javon Small the other two.
As one source within the OU program told Sooners Illustrated ahead of the NCAA Tournament in March, Fears had "nothing left to prove" as an NBA prospect after his impressive freshman season.
So, with draft day upon us, here's a final look at where Fears is projected to be picked when the first round gets underway Wednesday evening…
-- First round, fifth overall to the Utah Jazz (ESPN)
-- First round, seventh overall to the New Orleans Pelicans (The Ringer)
-- First round, fifth overall to the Utah Jazz (CBS Sports)
-- First round, fifth overall to the Utah Jazz (The Athletic)
-- First round, eighth overall to the Brooklyn Nets (Yahoo Sports)
-- First round, sixth overall to the Washington Wizards (USA Today)
-- First round, seventh overall to the New Orleans Pelicans (Sports Illustrated)
-- First round, seventh overall to the New Orleans Pelicans (NBADraft.net)
-- First round, seventh overall to the New Orleans Pelicans (Tankathon)