For a long, long time, NBA draft observers have been looking at 2025 as the Cooper Flagg Draft.
The now-Duke freshman (he doesn’t turn 18 for another 18 days) has been seen as far and away the best prospect in the draft and the consensus No. 1 overall pick.
To be sure, Flagg is still widely seen as the player who will be the top pick, but more and more people are talking about someone overtaking him, with a primary threat being BYU’s own fabulous first-year player, Egor Demin.
Demin has been shooting up draft boards since BYU’s season began a month ago, and this week alone several draft observers have written about how the jumbo Russian point guard could supplant Flagg.
On Monday, veteran NBA draft reporter Krysten Peek wrote on X, “After talking to over 40 NBA scouts and executives this past week, the general consensus is there are 4 players right now who could go No. 1 in June.”
She quoted a scout saying, “This is not a Wemby draft,” referring to San Antonio Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama.
The four players Peek listed who could go No. 1? Flagg, Rutgers freshmen stars Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey and Demin.
After talking to over 40 NBA scouts and executives this past week, the general consensus is there are 4 players right now who could go No. 1 in June. “This is not a Wemby draft,” one scout said.
Cooper Flagg (Duke)
Dylan Harper (Rutgers)
Ace Bailey (Rutgers)
Egor Demin (BYU)— Krysten Peek (@krystenpeek) December 2, 2024
Meanwhile, The Athletic’s draft expert Sam Vecenie on Tuesday released a Top 100 big board.
He slotted Demin at No. 2 behind Flagg but wrote, “Right now, if I were taking bets on the player who could supplant Flagg at No. 1, Demin would be my pick. Why? His passing and processing ability isn’t just high level; it’s elite. It’s different. He sees the game with the kind of incredibly clear understanding that comes from the league’s elite passers.”
Vecenie concluded his latest evaluation of Demin by writing, “We all want to see if this will hold up in Big 12 play, and ultimately, that’ll tell the tale of where Demin gets picked. But if it does, expect the Demin Hype Train to leave the station.”
In truth, the hype train has maybe already left the station. On Tuesday, the Providence Journal’s Bill Koch reported on X regarding Tuesday night’s game between BYU and Providence that because of Demin, “Providence athletic department official told me they couldn’t remember another game with more credential requests from NBA scouts/executives.”
Providence athletic department official told me they couldn’t remember another game with more credential requests from NBA scouts/executives.
Egor Demin signed a six-year contract with Real Madrid when he was 15. Five-star recruiting prospect and projected lottery pick in 2025. https://t.co/0rcgtkvCUK
— Bill Koch (@BillKoch25) December 3, 2024
And here’s some fun video posted by ESPN’s DraftExpress Monday of Demin practicing ahead of Tuesday night’s game.
Watching Egor Demin and BYU practice as they prepare to play at Providence tomorrow. The 6’9, 18-year old Russian guard is having a fantastic freshman season, averaging 14.3points, 6.3 assists and 4.9 rebounds, shooting 44% for 3. pic.twitter.com/V4TRbyFc4S
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) December 2, 2024