This is an article version of the CBS Sports HQ AM Newsletter, the ultimate guide to every day in sports. You can sign up to get it in your inbox every weekday morning here.
🏀 Good morning to all but especially to …
THE NBA DRAFT FIRST-ROUNDERS
Welcome to the first round of the NBA Draft, everyone! Tonight we get picks 1-30 — here’s the full order — and after last year’s No. 1 overall pick was a mystery, this year’s is anything but: Cooper Flagg will go first to the Mavericks, and even though that’s been the case ever since Dallas stunningly won the lottery, that shouldn’t make Mavericks fans any less excited.
Flagg is an absolute stud. A baller. A guy who alters the direction of a franchise that very much needs it. He was the best player in college basketball last season even though he wasn’t even supposed to be a freshman until this coming fall. LeBron James sang his praises. Here’s everything to know about Flagg.
Then there’s Ace Bailey, who has gotten decidedly less praise as he followed a mercurial freshman season at Rutgers with a concerning pre-draft process, opting to not work out for teams. Paul George criticized the approach, and even Pennsylvania’s governor is worried about the 76ers potentially drafting Bailey third. Here’s the latest intel on the teams holding picks 3-10, when the drama really begins.
Our bold predictions include Bailey falling out of the top five, though that might not even be that bold of a prediction given the betting odds. I liked Colin Ward-Henninger’s bold prediction, too:
Ward-Henninger: “Will Riley will be the steal of the draft — I legitimately think he is a top-10 talent. His range is unlimited and he shoots it with confidence, while he’s also shown flashes of some advanced…
Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/2025-nba-draft-preview-celtics-deal-kristaps-porzingis-to-hawks-wizards-send-jordan-poole-to-pelicans/
Author : Zachary Pereles
Publish date : 2025-06-25 12:45:00
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
