From Moscow to March Madness to the NBA: The 6-foot-9 point guard’s rise and draft outlook.

(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Brigham Young Cougars guard Egor Demin (3) tosses a pass, in basketball action between the Queens Royals and the BYU Cougars, at the Marriott Center, on Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2024.

Egor Demin will be suited up and sitting in the green room Wednesday night, waiting to become BYU’s first NBA draft pick since 2011.

The Cougar’s freshman phenom last season has plenty of physical gifts and a few question marks about his game. But most prognosticators have Demin going in the first round. If Demin is selected in the lottery, it would make him only the seventh top-14 pick in school history.

Here are five things to know about Demin ahead of the draft.

1. From Russia with love

(Pedro Castillo | Real Madrid) Real Madrid U18 player Egor Demin at a practice for the team in November 2023.

The 19-year-old grew up in Moscow, Russia, and traveled to Spain to play for Real Madrid’s youth development team in 2023.

The 6-foot-9 point guard catapulted up draft boards during the Euroleague Championship game against the Paris club Pole France INSEP. He finished with 26 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, three steals and two blocks.

His time in Spain raised some initial concerns among NCAA officials, but he was ultimately deemed eligible and cleared to play last season.

2. Why he picked BYU

It’s been a recent trend for top youth prospects in Europe to come to the United States to play college basketball. Illinois is making a roster out of it, and BYU is using it too.

Cougars coach Kevin Young assembled a staff with plenty of international coaching experience. Tim Fanning, Young’s offensive assistant, has a wealth of international connections from his time coaching in Israel and New Zealand.

The international connections helped identify and bring Demin to Provo — along with name, image and likeness money.

Demin was Young’s first NBA-level recruit when he got the job.

3. Will Egor Demin struggle in the NBA?

The knock on Demin’s game largely revolves around shooting. He is a gifted passer and has above-average size for his position. But Demin shot 27% from three in his lone college season.

But coaches continuously point out that Demin’s shot is mechanically fine. And Demin’s struggles were mostly concentrated during the middle part of the season. He finished the year knocking down multiple threes a game and helped the Cougars to the Sweet 16.

Fanning was critical to his development, along with Demin’s personal coach, Zach Gonzales. Demin’s workouts started at 6 a.m. during the season, and it showed in BYU’s most important stretch. Demin also shot well during the NBA Draft combine in Chicago.

(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) BYU basketball player Egor Demin announces his plans to enter the NBA Draft, where he would likely be a first-round pick in June, during a news event in Provo on Tuesday, April 8, 2025.

Here’s what two NBA sources told The Athletic about Demin recently:

Eastern Conference scout: “Egor shot the ball well in Chicago in that one-on-none; but the game’s played at 7, with people in the stands.”

Western Conference executive: “His vision and passing stuff, he’s not (Luka) Dončić. But this kid can pass it and has size and can play in an NBA game, because he can think on his own. He doesn’t need a script and look at it and has to learn it. He understands flow, who needs touches, time management, already. He’s mature beyond what he would be as a rookie. At worst, (he’s Josh) Giddey, in that hemisphere of a clone. The shooting piece, I’m not concerned with. He’ll figure that out. … Overall, he may be getting a little undervalued. When I saw him early, I figured if he played 34, 36 minutes a game, he could come close — I’m not saying he would — to averaging a triple-double. And I don’t think he was playing with that great (a group) of guys around him. How many other guys from that team are going to be pulling down a pro paycheck, except for maybe one or two of them?

4. He needs to add muscle

Demin is 6-foot-9 but struggled with the Big 12’s physicality in the early parts of the league play. Demin added 16 pounds to his frame and he was able to dictate the flow of the game better as he was more comfortable.

The added strength also allowed Demin to shoot better throughout the year, Fanning said. Playing more under control and taking better shots also went a long way.

(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Cincinnati Bearcats forward Dillon Mitchell (23) collides with Brigham Young Cougars guard Egor Demin (3), in Big 12 basketball action between the Brigham Young Cougars and the Cincinnati Bearcats at the Marriott Center, in Provo, on Saturday, Jan 25, 2025.

Demin will need to add more weight in the NBA.

Here’s what one anonymous college assistant coach told The Athletic about Demin: “He’s frail, but he’s tall and he’s long. When we played them, our whole thing was we were going to get up and pressure him, pressure him, pressure him. He can make all the reads, all the passes, both hands. He’s got all that down, especially when he sees the same coverages over and over. … We were like, let’s attack him. Trap the ball screen, go under. We kept switching it up. He struggled a little bit with that. I think he’s a good player, the Josh Giddey-ish type guy. I think he’s going to end up shooting it better. The NBA guys were asking me, “Well, what worries you?” It’s so physical (in the NBA). He’ll have to get adjusted to that, because he’s light in the ass that way. I think he’s going to just have to figure that out. Once he (does) that, he’ll be fine. Probably will wind up being a backup point guard for some years, because he’s got size, he can make shots. And he can really pass.”

5. NBA milestone for BYU

(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) BYU basketball player Egor Demin, signs a few jerseys for a Russian organization called God Ball, after announcing his plans to enter the NBA Draft, where he would likely be a first-round pick in June, during a news event in Provo on Tuesday, April 8, 2025.

Demin’s selection, wherever he lands, will be a milestone both for BYU’s future and its past.

This will be Young’s first draft pick at the college level. That will be a recruiting tool for Young, proof of concept his vision can work in Provo.

Young will have more draft picks next year with AJ Dybantsa and Richie Saunders. But the first pick is a big step.

BYU’s only had six players drafted inside the top 14 picks. Jimmer Fredette was the most recent, going 10th to the Sacramento Kings in 2011. Before that, BYU had Rafael Araújo picked eighth in 2003 and Shawn Bradley second in 1993. Michael Smith went 13th in 1989. But you’d have to go back decades for the final two. Mel Hutchins went second in 1951 and Craig Raymond went 12th in 1967.