Armed with five first-round picks entering Wednesday’s draft, the **Nets** have used the first of them – No. 8 – on BYU’s **[Egor Demin](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/egor-demin-1.html?utm_medium=linker&utm_source=www.hoopsrumors.com&utm_campaign=2025-06-25_cbb)**.
It’s the first major surprise of the night, as Demin was just outside the top 10 in most mock drafts leading up to the draft.
At 6’9″, Demin has the length of a forward but the skill set of a guard — [ESPN’s Jonathan Givony](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/41662748/2025-nba-draft-big-board-rankings-top-100-prospects-players) has referred to him as the best passer in this year’s draft class, noting that the 19-year-old’s combination of size and play-making ability is rare.
Demin, who was born in Russia, played for Real Madrid’s B squad in Spain before making the move to BYU for the 2024/25 season. He was named to the Big 12 All-Freshman team after averaging 10.6 points, 5.5 assists, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.2 steals in 27.5 minutes per game across 33 starts, with a shooting line of .412/.273/.695.
More to come…