The NBA season is starting to come to an end, as the NBA Finals is right around the corner.
This means two things. One, a champion is soon to be crowned. The second thing is hope. The NBA Draft is on June 25, and this is a time when teams can improve by selecting players or trading away picks for superstars.
In 2025, the Illini will have multiple players selected. It has been a long time since that has happened, but both Illinois players should go in the first round, too.
The first Illinois player off the board is going to be Kasparas Jakucionis. He is a superstar guard with a ton of potential.
The latest 2025 NBA Mock Draft by seasoned NBA expert Kevin O’Connor actually has Jakucionis dropping further than I expected. But this isn’t a bad thing because most teams toward the top of the draft are horrible.
O’Connor’s mock draft has Jakucionis being selected No. 17 overall. The team is familiar to most Illinois fans, too. He has Jakucionis landing with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
This is a perfect spot for Jakucionis. Minnesota is a good team that was just in the Western Conference Finals. You don’t want to go to a dumpster fire of a franchise, and the Timberwolves are young and hungry.
I also believe this is a good spot because of the potential playing time. Minnesota has an aging Mike Conley at point guard. Behind him, there isn’t a ton of talent waiting in the wings. This would be a perfect opportunity for Jakucionis to come in and learn for a minute behind Conely. Once Conley is gone, that is what the kid can take over the starting job.
Kasparas Jakucionis needs to do some tweaking to his game to sustain an NBA career
Jakucionis has all of the talent and potential in the world. I have seen games at Illinois where he wowed me completely. But then there are times when I think he could use another year of college or his game needs some work
One of the two things that comes to mind to help him sustain a long NBA career would be to get stronger finishing around the rim. The NBA is a different animal. The players are bigger, faster, and stronger. Jakucionis is going to need to be able to take hits and stay healthy.
The three-point shooting woes is the second thing for Jakucionis to improve on. He only shot 31.8% from three-point range at Illinois. Again, in some games, he was sensational and was able to create his own shot. Most of the time, he struggled. That needs to improve.