NBA Draft 2025: Top Pick & International Prospects

This time, France will not win the timpani. After Victor Wembanyama and Zaccharie Risacher, there will not be a third number 1 tricolor in rank for this Draft NBA 2025. Unless the earthquake, it is the young American talent Cooper Flagg (18), who will be selected first by the Dallas Mavericks at night to Wednesday to Thursday. But it will not be a year without for France. This draft will even be an opportunity for tricolor basketball to place several talents in the NBA.

The interest of NBA franchises for French basketball cannot be denied. This draft will certainly not be up to the last, with the comet Wemby then this improbable trio of 2024 (Risacher number 1, Alex Sarr 2e and Tidjane Salaün 6th). But some young tricolors are still long awaited for this 2025 cuvée. Depending on the various expert sites on the subject, the predictions announce five blues in the first round, with Nolan Traoré, Noa Essengue, Joan Beringer, Maxime Raynaud or Noah Penda.

Nolan Traoré has long been expected to be the one who was going to guide this three-color generation during this 2025 draft. Long awaited in the top 5, the Saint-Quentin leader saw his rating drop over the months after a year in pro a solid for a player of his age but less explosive than his first steps in the elite in 2024 (11.6 pts, 5.1 rbds in 2024-25). In the latest “Mock Draft”, the former INSEP prodigy is announced around 20th place, far from the hype 2024. And the one who is most popular among the Blues, it is Noa Essengue.

If it is perhaps less famous for the French public than Traoré, it is for an obvious reason: Noa Essenue has left France from a very young age for Germany. After an impressive season with the Federal Center in N1 at 16 (8.5 pts, 3.4 RBDS), the native of Orleans opted in 2023 for the ULM club, renowned in Europe to be a bumpy of talents with its Orange Academy. Orleans can only congratulate itself on its choice, which has put it in full light. This season and after a 2023-24 exercise where he took the temperature, he exploded. The interior of 2m06 finished with 9.7 points, 4.5 rebounds in 22 minutes on average in the Bundesliga and with 12.4 points, 5.3 rebounds in 24 minutes in Eurocup.

At the age of 18, Essenue has played a real role with Ulm, which is currently playing the final of the German championship against Bayern Munich. Its athletic qualities, its youth, its defensive versatility or its remarkable mobility for its size have made the winger one of the most sides of this draft. To the point that some like Bleacher report and ESPN see it being called in the top 10.

At the Barclays Center in Brooklyn this Wednesday, Joan Beringer will not hear his name very long after that of Noa Essengue. And it’s pretty crazy to think about it. Because the Alsatian has a lunar journey. While he only took his first basketball license until September 2021, at 14, the pivot of more than 2m10 (2m13 with shoes according to the latest measures taken in the United States) will be drafted four years later in the NBA. Passed by Strasbourg, Beringer chose to join Slovenia and Cedevita Olimpija in 2024 to work under the orders of the famous coach, Zvezdan Mitrovic. And this year, he caught the eye of observers in the Adriatic League and Eurocup.

If its stats are not snoring (4.9 pts, 4.1 RBDS, 1.5 against), its potential and its ability to protect the circle with its crazy scale intrigue many franchises. Even if there is still a lot of work with him and that we will have to be patient to continue the “polishing” of this diamond, the “best draft counter” according to ESPN is thus expected between the 14th and 22nd place according to the latest estimates. In any case, its story is already crazy.

Long mentioned to be retained in the second round, Maxime Raynaud and Noah Penda are now announced at the end of the first round. Threading with Le Mans this season (10.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists), Penda was voted best young From the season in Betclic Elite -a year after having already been in Pro B -. The powerful 20 -year -old winger (1m99), never stingy in efforts and excellent defender, has the profile to seduce franchises at the end of the second round.

Former teammate in Espoirs in Nanterre by Victor Wembanyama with that he made the buzz in training sessions, Maxime Raynaud plans to surf him on his last exceptional season with Stanford in NCAA (20.2 pts, 10.5 RBDS on average per game). If he still has to take a CAP in defense to be a real threat with his size when some wonder if he is not going to be in difficulty in the NBA in this area, the pivot of 2m15, which dreamed at a time of NASA when he entered the prestigious US University, pleases his ability to dismiss the opposing defenses.

Its successful release at the NBA Draft combines (20 pts) pushes to think that it will have the honor of being retained on Wednesday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn before the end of the first round. What to say that this draft will still be blue, white and red. Even if all these talents made in France will not be called first as in 2023 and 2024. This will also allow them to continue their ascent with a little less pressure.