The San Antonio Spurs will pick second overall in the 2025 NBA Draft.
The Dallas Mavericks may have risen from the 11th-best odds with only a 1.8% chance to land the top pick, stealing the spotlight and running away with the first overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, but they weren’t the only risers.
Their in-state rival, the San Antonio Spurs, had only a 6.3% chance to pick second overall, and they walked away as winners as well.
The Mavericks will undoubtedly take Cooper Flagg first overall from Duke University, leaving the Spurs with a question that scouts and experts have been asking for over a year.
Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty ImagesWho is the second-best player in the 2025 NBA Draft?
Flagg will be off the board when the Spurs pick, but there is still plenty of talent for them to pair with Victor Wembanyama. San Antonio can draft a scorer like Tre Johnson or Ace Bailey, a lead guard like Dylan Harper or VJ Edgecombe, or take a flier on a center like Derik Queen or Khaman Maluach.
The Spurs have centered their future on Victor Wembanyama, surrounding him with complementary talents like Stephon Castle, De’Aaron Fox, Devin Vassell, and Jeremy Sochan. Rutgers’ guard Dylan Harper, son of NBA champion Ron, is expected to be the second player off the board after Flagg, but the Spurs already have their backcourt of the future set between Castle and Fox.
Harper can command an offense or serve as an off-ball scorer and is likely the second-best player in the draft, but the Spurs will do their due diligence and draft whoever they think will maximize Wembanyama.
Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty ImagesExploring Spurs’ options with the second pick
Harper seems to be the consensus number two, although the majority isn’t as convinced about him as they are with Flagg. The Spurs, it would seem, could use some added shooting, which begs a question: would they pass on Harper?
After all, he shot only 33.3% from behind the arc, and a lineup of him, Wembanyama, Fox, Castle, and Jeremy Sochan doesn’t exactly space the floor at a high level.
The best scorer in the draft, from anywhere on the floor, is Texas’ Tre Johnson. He led the Big 12 with 19.9 points per game and shot an excellent 39.7% from deep. Yes, he is a bit skinny, and his defense is not the best, although Wembanyama, Castle, and Fox could more than make up for that.
In years past, the Spurs have been “cute” with their selections. The selection of Josh Primo in 2022 has still left a bad taste in fans’ mouths, and with a title-caliber player already on the roster, the Spurs won’t be able to gamble, which makes Harper the safe bet to be second off the board.