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The NCAA Tournament with all its attention and wondrous drama serves as a spotlight this spring for some of the best and brightest stars in the 2025 NBA Draft class — among them Auburn star Johni Broome, the Arkansas duo of Boogie Fland and Adou Thiero and, well, basically every player on Duke including Cooper Flagg.
March Madness may provide us some answers to some burning questions to elucidate the class ahead of this summer's draft. But aside from the likely No. 1 pick in Flagg, there remain far fewer questions than answers about how the first and second rounds may unfold.
[2025 NCAA Tournament bracket predictions: Why four of our experts pick Duke to cut down nets in March Madness Cameron Salerno
2025 NCAA Tournament bracket predictions: Why four of our experts pick Duke to cut down nets in March Madness](https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/2025-ncaa-tournament-bracket-predictions-why-four-of-our-experts-pick-duke-to-cut-down-nets-in-march-madness/)
So fellow NBA Draft nutcase Adam Finkelstein and I got together this week to try and predict what the next month may bring on that front with a foundation of where things stand. We came up with answers for some of the burning questions this month to paint a more clear picture of the NBA Draft landscape leading into the next couple weeks.
Cooper Flagg has locked up No. 1 overall
Yes, he has. Flagg hasn't just lived up to expectations this year at Duke, he's exceeded them. Specifically, he's shown notable improvement with both his self-creation and his shooting, all while being every bit as versatile, competitive, advanced defensively, and smart as advertised. The other reality is that no one has made much of a case to be in the number one conversation. Dylan Harper had a stretch in the first month of the season where he looked poised to, but he was derailed by injuries and never able to regain that same level, at least with consistency. Ace Bailey had some wow games, but they didn't happen nearly often enough to challenge Flagg. So short of something completely unexpected happening, Cooper Flagg will be the number one pick in June's draft, regardless of what happens in the NCAA Tournament. — Adam Finkelstein
The best small-school draft talent to know is _____
I'm going to stretch the definition of small school here and pick a prospect from outside the major conference structure — in which case the answer seems obvious for me.
It's Colorado State's Nique Clifford.
Clifford has played like an All-American the last month in leading the Rams to the NCAA Tournament and has the skill, physique and two-way game to be an instant impact type player at the NBA. He ranks as a top-20 prospect on my Big Board and can be a 3-and-D addition for an NBA team with room to grow into much more. — Kyle Boone
Who has the most NBA talent in the tourney?
Duke! Jon Scheyer's club has both the star power and the depth and runs away with this honor. Flagg is going to be the number one pick in the draft. Khaman Maluach and Kon Knueppel both look like other potential one-and-done lottery picks. Even Isaiah Evans has looked like an increasing one-and-done candidate as the season has gone on with his wing size and shot-making. The veterans have helped themselves too. Tyrese Proctor has made huge gains with his shooting and seemed to benefit by having to shoulder less of the ball-handling responsibilities. Sion James, the grad transfer from Tulane, is also very firmly on the NBA radar now as he fits the coveted 3-and-D archetype with his powerful 6-foot-6 frame on the perimeter and continued growth of his three-point shooting. — Finkelstein
Read more from Adam Finkelstein on teams with the most NBA-ready talent in the tournament.
Who has the best chance to resuscitate their draft stock?
Most of this year's first-round prospects playing in March are pretty stable in terms of their draft stock so this one seems easy to me: It's Boogie Fland.
Fland is expected to be available for Arkansas after undergoing hand surgery and missing the last two months. When he went down, Arkansas was 0-5 in SEC play — and it has since rallied to play its way into the NCAA Tournament without him, while Fland's stock has seemingly slipped from a potential top-10 prospect to someone who could slip into the 20s or 30s.
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Fland averaged 15.1 points, 5.7 assists and 3.4 rebounds per game in 18 appearances before shutting it down, but producing and pitching in to winning on a big stage would do his stock wonders. A big game or two showcasing his speed and scoring — and a couple wins as a cherry on top — could see him play his way right back into the lottery discussion. — Boone
Kon Kneuppel will be second Duke player drafted
Ehhhh. Pass? Maybe true? It will be him or Maluach. Their ranges look very similar right now. Knueppel is a little higher on my personal board, but they couldn't be much more different, so beauty is very much going to be in the eye of the beholder on this own. Maluach fits the archetype that has hit most consistently in recent years – as a shot-blocking, rim running, lob threat. Kneuppel is a skilled and cerebral glue guy on the perimeter who can fit in with just about anyone offensively, and has exceeded expectations defensively. It's still early, but depending on how the draft order shakes out, I think either could be in the mix as early as 5 or 6. Both are likely off the board before the lottery closes. — Finkelstein
Jonni Broome's NBA outlook is _____
Rising! The Zach Edey story doesn't hurt. Broome is a very real contender to be the Player of the Year in college basketball. Edey was that for the previous two years and all the while he was told he still wasn't much of an NBA prospect. He ended up being picked 9th and has carved out a steady role with Memphis. I don't expect Broome to exceed expectations to the same extend, but Edey's example has given scouts a second thought before discrediting Broome to quickly. The other factor has been Broome's area of improvement, particularly as it relates to his versatility. He's impacting the game in so many different ways – scoring, extending his game away from the paint, passing, rebounding, blocking shots, and defending. He may not be a star at the next level, but when you can contribute in that many ways, you can plug a lot of holes as a role player. — Finkelstein
[2025 NBA Mock Draft: Duke's Cooper Flagg goes No. 1 ahead of Rutgers' Dylan Harper Kyle Boone
2025 NBA Mock Draft: Duke's Cooper Flagg goes No. 1 ahead of Rutgers' Dylan Harper](https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/2025-nba-mock-draft-dukes-cooper-flagg-goes-no-1-ahead-of-rutgers-dylan-harper/)
There's NBA potential for Kansas lifers DaJuan Harris Jr. and Hunter Dickinson
I never want to definitively rule out any player's NBA prospects. But I'd say it's more likely than not that Harris and Dickinson don't stick in the NBA as part of anything more than occasional G Leaguers who bounce between there and the big show. Harris is a savvy lead guard but his shooting has trailed off each of the last three seasons. Dickinson just doesn't have the lateral ability to move like an NBA big nor the athletic pop to consistently contest at or around the rim. I'd rank them as two-way talents somewhere outside the top 60.
The Montverde Academy alum taken after Flagg will be ______
Derik Queen, Liam McNeeley, and Asa Newell all teamed with Flagg last year at Montverde Academy (along with Baylor's Rob Wright). Those four could all be lottery picks this year. Right now, my order after Flagg would be McNeeley, Queen, and Newell. That is certainly debatable though and will likely come down to team needs. You could make a case for all three in the mid-lottery and I would be surprised if any of them were still on the board once we got to 20. All 3 are also playing critical roles for their respective college teams, so this month's action could help to dictate the direction of their stock. — Finkelstein
The transfers who helped their NBA stock the most this year ____
Danny Wolf at Michigan. He's very much in the conversation with the best frontcourt prospects in the class – along with the likes of Maluach, Queen, Flagg, and South Carolina's Collin Murray-Boyles. At just under 7-feet, the Yale transfer has shown a terrific skill-set for his size, even more so as a ball-handler and passer than as a shooter. He was a critical piece in Michigan's Big Ten championship and now looks like he's going to go from a player who got minimal time as a freshman at Yale to an NBA player after a breakout junior season at Michigan. — Finkelstein
And ...
Like Finkelstein noted, Wolf is the obvious candidate here; he was not on my radar at all entering this year and could be a lottery pick. The next player I'd propose is Adou Thiero at Arkansas. He was a quality starter at Kentucky but has upped his game with Arkansas as a bulldog defender who can score at a high level to boot. His role in the NBA will be primarily on the defensive end, which should free him up to take more off-ball looks on offense — where he will be more than comfortable as a secondary option. There was buzz about him in the preseason making a leap and he's been a top-30 staple on my Big Board since November. — Boone