Big 12 Prospect Preview: 2024-'25
These are the 2025 NBA Draft names to know in the Big 12 Conference.
Good news, folks: college basketball is back, and to start the season here at The Draftstack, we’re rounding out our conference-by-conference previews. Our very own Jacob LeRea kicked things off in the preseason with our previews for the BIG10 and ACC, and now we’ll be diving into the Big 12 here (with the SEC coming soon!). So, without further ado, here’s all there is to know about the Big 12 in the 2024-’25 season.
The Conference: New Additions & Notable Departures
As we noted in our other conference previews, conference realignment has caused some big shake ups across the NCAA, and the Big 12 was arguably one of the most impacted conferences of them all. Most notably, two long-time Big 12 headliners, the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma, both left for the SEC. Meanwhile, the near implosion of the PAC-12 immediately helped to fill the void left by Texas and OU. The University of Arizona, Arizona State University, the University of Colorado at Boulder, and the University of Utah round out the Big 12’s newest additions.
With this in mind, however, these four programs are entering the Big 12 at a time when three long-standing Big 12 programs—Kansas, Houston, and Iowa State—all currently sit in the AP Top 25 Rankings. Arizona is the only Big 12 newcomer currently ranked in the Top 25 (currently #10), with Baylor also sitting two spots above them at #8. These teams may not be quite as talked about coming into the season in comparison to two of the nation’s most stacked rosters—Duke and Alabama—but it’s difficult to envision an NCAA Tournament where there isn’t at least one, if not multiple Big 12 teams being in the mix for a championship run.
The Freshmen: Big 12’s One-and-Done Candidates
Now comes what you’re probably here for—the names to watch in the Big 12’s 2024-’25 season. While it’s still quite early in the NBA Draft cycle to be making any definitive statements about the NCAA’s incoming freshmen, the Big 12 is loaded with talented newcomers to the point that it would be borderline unimaginable not to see at least one of them not being selected by an NBA team in the first round. These are the one-and-done candidates to watch:
VJ Edgecomb - Guard, Baylor
Baylor’s freshman guard Valdez “VJ” Edgecomb—ESPN and 247 Sports’ #5 overall recruit in the nation—is without a doubt the Big 12’s top one-and-done candidate at the moment and ranked in the top five or 10 of the large majority of public-facing big boards and mock drafts. The 6’4”-ish Bahamian guard has been hyped for his twitchy, wildly explosive athleticism, high motor, and on-ball defensive tenacity in combination with his upside as an off-ball scorer. His on-ball impact, particularly in the half court, is likely what will be his biggest swing factor in NBA Draft conversations, but being that The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie has already compared him to a “[more athletic] Cason Wallace,” his floor should be quite high. Edgecomb’s other incoming freshman teammates, Robert Wright III and Jason Asemota, will both be other names to monitor despite not being nearly as hyped at this stage.
Egor Demin - Guard/Wing, BYU
At this stage, Russian point-wing Egor Demin, who last played for Real Madrid before committing to Kevin Young and BYU, seems to be one of the most divisive first-round NBA Draft prospects. Making the transition from international basketball to the NCAA can cause some growing pains for any prospect, and on top of that, Denim’s role on the team remains a bit ambiguous. In the NBA Draft, he’ll be most valuable if he can prove that he’s trustworthy with the ball in his hands and even more so if he shoots the ball well. But his shooting is leaving evaluators very split at the time of writing, and if he plays more of an off-ball role with the Cougars, his efficiency, decision-making, and defensive aptitude will be extremely important for his draft stock. He strikes me as someone that could boom or bust, but if he booms, he’ll really boom. Alongside Demin, his freshman teammate and former Overtime Elite product Kanon Catchings will be another name to watch.
Carter Bryant - Wing/Forward, Arizona
After Edgecomb and Demin, strictly concerning freshmen, there’s a bit of a dropoff. But Arizona’s Carter Bryant is likely one of the safer players to mention here next assuming he buys into his bench role and succeeds in doing so. At roughly 6’8” and 220 pounds, he already has desirable NBA size and a frame that could allow him to pack on even more muscle. If he can prove to be a useful dribble-pass-shoot forward (with an emphasis on the shooting and passing), he’ll draw interest from NBA teams looking for a strong role-player on the wing with some upside to spare.
Joson Sanon - Guard, Arizona State
Heading down the road to Tempe, you won’t find Arizona State’s Joson Sanon on a ton of draft boards at the moment, but his role on a somewhat depleted Sun Devils team could propel him into draft conversations if he’s given a bright green light by Bobby Hurley. He profiles as a versatile bucket-getter with good size at roughly 6’5” who is comfortable shooting off the dribble and in spot-up situations playing away from the ball. With that in mind, there’s a chance he won’t have an elite skill to hang his hat on coming into the draft, so much like Demin, Sanon’s value will likely hinge on how effective he is with the ball in his hands. If he has an efficient scoring season with enough flashes of good decision-making and playmaking, he’ll draw plenty of interest from NBA teams in need of offensive upside. Sanon’s other freshmen teammates Amier Ali and Jayden Quaintance should draw some eyes as well.
Quick Hit Freshmen Sleepers
Flory Bidunga - Big, Kansas
Kansas’ Flory Bidunga is another somewhat divisive prospect in the early going, but similar to Carter Bryant, if he can buy into his bench role behind Hunter Dickinson, and perhaps even replace him in some tougher matchups, expect him to rise on draft boards. I generally dislike player comparisons, but Bidunga feels a bit like this year’s Adem Bona (for better and worse), but in a better situation with a more defined role. In terms of role, Moussa Diabate could even be an apt comparison here.
Moustapha Thiam - Big, UCF
If you’re high on a player like Duke’s Khaman Maluach in this draft cycle, then I’d advise you to at least keep tabs on UCF’s Moustapha Thiam as well, who profiles quite similarly despite not quite having the athletic tools that Maluach brings to the table. Thiam is every bit of 7’2”, has a bit of shooting upside, and brings all the rim-protecting tools one would like to see from someone his size. For what it’s worth, he was also ranked the #1 center in the class of 2025 until reclassifying.
Christian Anderson - Guard, Texas Tech
Despite being a bit on the smaller side and potentially being overshadowed by the likes of JT Toppin and Darrion Williams, Texas Tech freshman and Oak Hill product Christian Anderson is a name to keep tabs on. Not only did he average 20.3 points, 5 assists, and 2.3 rebounds in seven games at the FIBA U18 Eurobasket Tournament, but word coming out of Lubbock indicates he could be more of a factor early on than originally thought. Take it from Jon Rothstein: “Remember the name.”
The Returners: Big 12 Sophomores & Upperclassmen
We aren’t going to go quite as in-depth here about players returning to school because, frankly, the Big 12 is loaded with them, and many of them are players who you’ve probably watched before. But we’ll quickly run through the schools with the most notable NBA prospects and dive a bit into a few of our favorites.
Arizona is the most logical place to begin here because, well, one could argue that nearly a third of their roster should be on NBA Draft watchlists. KJ Lewis, Motiejus Krivas, Henri Veesaar, Jaden Bradley, and Trey Townsend all bring serious talent to the roster and will be an extraordinarily potent group if their chemistry reaches a certain threshold. From a draft perspective, Lewis is my favorite of the bunch. Despite putting up somewhat underwhelming counting stats in his freshman season, he quickly proved to be a brick wall of a defender who could physically compete with multi-year college athletes who are far bigger than him. If he has a more efficient shooting season, he could crack into the first round of the draft. But even if his efficiency is roughly the same, a Jamal Shead-like route to the league is in the cards for him.
While perhaps not quite as deep, Kansas’ group of returners is just as, if not even more interesting, headlined by South Dakota State and Alabama transfers Zeke Mayo and Rylan Griffen along with Wisconsin transfer AJ Storr. Mayo and Griffen both received quite a bit of draft buzz dating back to last draft cycle, and particularly in Mayo’s case, I’d be surprised if they don’t receive similar buzz this year. If there’s anything I’m concerned about with this group—and particularly concerning the dynamic between Mayo and Storr—it’s who gets the touches and the shots. If he’s given a large role and can come close to replicating his numbers at South Dakota State, NBA teams will value him and his potent offensive skill set despite being 22 years old on draft night.
Next comes Iowa State, whose #5 overall ranking on the AP Top 25 has everything to do with the three-headed monster that is Tamin Lipsey, Keshon Gilbert, and Milan Momcilovic. Momcilovic likely has the highest upside of the group if he can put all of his tools together and become more assertive on the court, but after seeing the group in person multiple times, I consistently left the games most optimistic about Keshon Gilbert. He’s a high-motor, defensive bully in a similar way to KJ Lewis, but being smaller than Lewis and someone who will ideally be a point guard or combo guard at the next level, consistent three-point shooting and scoring in general will likely dictate his value in the eyes of NBA teams.
West Virginia likely won’t be as successful as any of the three teams above, but they may have my favorite returner of the bunch in Tucker DeVries, who was extremely productive in his sophomore and junior campaigns at Drake and will likely be one of the best shooters in the 2025 NBA Draft. It’s always evident that he’s a coach’s son in that his high basketball IQ is consistently on display and most evident in his playmaking acumen and above-average steal rate despite his lacking athleticism. That lack of athleticism is what hold him back from being a shoo-in NBA talent, so if he shows virtually any improvements in that area this season, expect to hear his name called next summer.
These wrap up the main players to look out for in my mind, but a few other schools have groups of returners worth mentioning as honorable mentions. Most notably, Kansas State’s group of Arthur Kaluma, Coleman Hawkins, Ugonna Onyenso, and Achor Achor presents a good amount of draftable upside, along with Baylor’s new additions of former Duke guard Jeremy Roach and Miami’s Norchad Omier. Houston’s group of Milos Uzan, Joseph “Jojo” Tugler, LJ Cryer, and Terrance Arceneaux is mildly interesting from a draft perspective even if their combined NCAA upside is better than their NBA upside, and the same could be said for Cincinnati’s trio of Jizzle James, former Texas Longhorn Dillon Mitchell, and Dan Skillings.