NORMAN — University of Oklahoma point guard Jeremiah Fears was selected by the New Orleans Pelicans with the seventh overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft on Wednesday night at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., becoming the Sooners' 50th all-time draft selection and 10th first-rounder.
Fears is OU's fourth top-seven pick in the last 16 years, joining Blake Griffin (No. 1 in 2009), Buddy Hield (No. 6 in 2016) and Trae Young (No. 5 in 2018). The four top-seven selections going back to the 2009 draft are fifth most nationally with only Kentucky (13), Duke (12) and Arizona and Kansas (five each) boasting more.
"Our staff is so happy for Jeremiah on this special night," said OU head coach Porter Moser. "He joined our program last summer as a 17-year-old and was way beyond his years with his dedication, work ethic, humility and willingness to learn. He is an ultra-competitor and is driven to be the best. He has earned this incredible moment and we are elated for him and his family."
Fears, who turned 18 last October, was an SEC All-Freshman Team selection for OU last season when he averaged team highs of 17.1 points, 4.1 assists and 1.6 steals per contest. The four-time SEC Freshman of the Week also ranked third on the squad with 4.1 rebounds per outing and shot .434 from the field and .851 from the free throw line in helping the Sooners to their first NCAA Tournament since 2021. His 183 free throw makes and 251 attempts both ranked second in the SEC.
The 6-4, 180-pounder from Joliet, Ill., ranked seventh overall in the SEC and seventh nationally among freshmen in points per game, and was one of just three Power Four conference players (the only one in the SEC and the only freshman) to average at least 17.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.5 steals per contest.
A double-digit scorer in 30 of 34 games and a 20-point scorer in a team-high-tying 11 of them, Fears was especially effective late in the season as he finished with at least 20 points in each of OU's last three contests, four of its last five and six of its last nine. He averaged 22.3 points, 4.9 rebounds and 5.0 assists over the season's last nine outings to become the only SEC player since at least 1996-97 to average at least 20.0/4.5/5.0 over a nine-game span.
Fears scored a career-high 31 points and added four rebounds and five assists in a win over No. 15 Missouri on March 5, going 9 for 13 from the field and 12 for 12 at the free throw line. He registered 30 points in a one-point Jumpman Invitational win over No. 24 Michigan on Dec. 18 in Charlotte, N.C., converting a 4-point play with 11 seconds left for the game's final points.
He was particularly strong in the postseason, registering 29 points, six rebounds, two assists and three steals in a first-round SEC Tournament win over Georgia and following with 28 points, four boards, five assists and three steals in one-point loss to No. 15 Kentucky the next night. Against the Wildcats, he scored 10 points in last 1:19 to help OU go from down 10 to up one (he made the go-ahead driving lay-in with 5.6 seconds left). Then in the NCAA Tournament first round against two-time defending champion UConn, he tallied a game-high 20 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Fears, who was tabbed the No. 24 overall prospect in the 2025 ESPN 100, reclassified to the class of 2024 and arrived on OU's campus last August. He came off the bench in each of OU's first three games before starting the final 31. His ability was on display from the outset, and he was named to the Battle 4 Atlantis All-Tournament Team in November after helping the Sooners beat Providence, No. 24 Arizona and Louisville on consecutive days to win the title. He averaged 18.7 points, 5.3 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 2.7 steals over those three victories, and went for 26 points, five boards and five assists in the semifinals against the Wildcats.
He recorded another stellar effort in a Feb. 22 home win over No. 21 Mississippi State when he turned in a 27-point, career-high 10-assist, five-rebound afternoon. He became one of just two SEC players (Auburn's Sharife Cooper in 2020-21 was the other) since at least the 1996-97 campaign and one of only two Power Four players on the season (Louisville's Terrence Edwards Jr. was the other) to record 27-plus points, 10-plus assists and five-plus rebounds in a game.
A business major at OU, Fears declared for the draft April 2. He is the second Sooner drafted by the Pelicans, joining Hield.
OKLAHOMA'S FIRST-ROUND NBA DRAFT PICKS
2025: Jeremiah Fears, G (No. 7 overall)
2018: Trae Young, G (No. 5 overall)
2016: Buddy Hield, G (No. 6 overall)
2009: Blake Griffin, F (No. 1 overall)
1989: Stacey King, F (No. 6 overall)
1989: Mookie Blaylock, G (No. 12 overall)
1988: Harvey Grant, F (No. 12 overall)
1985: Wayman Tisdale, F (No. 2 overall)
1975: Alvan Adams, F (No. 4 overall)
1951: Marcus Freiberger, C (No. 3 overall)