10 March Madness stars whose 2025 NBA Draft stock is shooting to moon
03/24/2025 06:01 PM
March Madness is the best time for NBA hopefuls to boost their draft stock.
Every year, fans see star players cement their cases as future draftees, while other unheralded players come out of nowhere to shoot up draft boards. While there haven’t been as many Cinderella runs or NCAA Tournament darlings this year as there normally are, there are still a handful of players who have certainly improved their status as 2025 NBA Draft prospects. Here are 10 players whose NBA Draft stock is shooting to the moon.
Derik Queen, Maryland, C
Game-winning buzzer-beaters are a staple of March Madness. It took until late in day two of the Round of 32 for there to be one this year, but Derik Queen’s game-winner demonstrates why scouts are enamored by his potential. The Maryland center was already a projected lottery pick before the NCAA Tournament, but his big shot against Colorado State cemented his case near the top of the draft, and it could help him sneak closer to the top-five.
After all, players like Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey of Rutgers didn’t even have a chance to prove themselves during March Madness, while Queen is proving himself on a team now set to play in the Sweet 16. Queen’s game-winner came seconds after CSU’s Jalen Lake hit a would-be game-winning 3-point shot. With just over three seconds in the game, Maryland inbounded the ball to Queen at the top of the perimeter. The center drove to the basket and hit a falling-away bank shot off one foot as time expired.
Big guys just don’t normally get this type of play drawn up for them, and they certainly can rarely execute it. Queen isn’t your normal big man, though, and his game-winner illustrated that perfectly. Queen’s ability to put the basketball on the floor is rare for a center, and he is such a force on offense because he combines that with excellent footwork and tons of strength.
While his defensive projection is a conversation for another day, the only clear weakness Queen showed on offense this year was the 3-point shot, but he eliminated that concern in the Round of 32 as well. After shooting 4-28 from deep prior to Maryland’s most recent game, Queen made two 3-pointers early in the game. The shots kept Maryland afloat while the rest of his team was struggling. Queen has the potential to become a reliable 3-point shooter at the NBA level, and that was the biggest thing that scouts wanted to see from him in the NCAA Tournament. A game-winner was just the cherry on top.
Nique Clifford, Colorado State, SF
Nique Clifford may have been on the wrong side of the aforementioned buzzer-beater, but he still boosted his draft stock in 12-seed CSU’s near run to the Sweet 16. Clifford has been great for the Rams all season as a scorer, evidenced by his 18.9 point-per-game average.
The 6-foot-6 wing has a great mid-range shot, he thrives getting to and finishing at the rim, and he can hit the 3-pointer. Clifford’s scoring (3-13) actually disappeared a little in CSU’s upset win over Memphis, though. Clifford proved he can impact the game in other ways. He particularly thrived as a facilitator, as he had six assists in the win over Memphis. He kept that passing hot streak alive with six more assists vs. Maryland.
Clifford is athletic and versatile. At the NBA level, he should be able to do the little things in a role-player position that help his team win ball games. Had his Rams won in the Round of 32, like they nearly did – Clifford was the one who assisted Jalen Lake’s late 3-point make – then Clifford could have emerged as the true March Madness breakout star that everybody has wanted to see this year. Even with the Round of 32 loss, Clifford now has a much better chance to be selected at the end of the first round in the 2025 NBA Draft.
John Tonje, Wisconsin, SG
To keep the CSU talk alive, John Tonje started his collegiate career in Fort Collins, Colorado, playing for Niko Medved and the Rams. The Second-Team All-American has improved drastically since those days, and he became a Second-Team All-American for Wisconsin this season. Tonje is a sixth-year senior who has improved every season, excluding his medical redshirt season with Missouri last year.
At Wisconsin, Tonje transformed from a role player whose basketball career was likely nearing an end to one of the best scorers in the country and somebody who could now be drafted in the second round. That was on full display in Wisconsin’s game against BYU in the Round of 32. While the Badgers lost, Tonje had one of the best games in a losing effort in March Madness history.
He scored 37 points while willing his team to the finish line. Unfortunately, Tonje airballed Wisconsin’s last shot with the game on the line, effectively ending their season and his collegiate career. Regardless, the scoring outburst was impressive and was one of the best March Madness scoring outputs in recent memory. In fact, he set Wisconsin’s record for NCAA Tournament single-game scoring.
Walter Clayton Jr., Florida, SG
Florida was a common pick to win the 2025 NCAA Tournament, and they are backing that hype up so far. The team has great depth, but Walter Clayton Jr. is emerging as the true star of the program during March Madness. While he led his team in scoring (17.9) all season long, he has stepped things up during March Madness.
Clayton has scored 23 points in each of Florida’s first two tournament games. He scored 22 points in each of the two SEC Tournament games before that. The guard made 38.7% of his 7.8 3-point attempts, but he’s shown off much more than just marksmanship from beyond the arc.
Clayton was particularly impressive in crunch time of Florida’s Round of 32 game against UConn, the back-to-back defending champions. In Florida’s comeback effort, Clayton hit multiple clutch buckets. With three years of impressive collegiate production, Clayton could now be worth a second-round flyer. Drafting play-now rookies with lots of experience is becoming more common of a trend in the NBA Draft because of the roster-building restrictions that come with the NBA’s newest CBA. Clayton fits the bill of someone who can play an end-of-bench role right away in the NBA next year, and he is only building upon his resume.
Tyrese Proctor, Duke, PG
Tyrese Proctor has been unconscious during the 2025 NCAA tournament. The Duke junior has made 13 of his 16 3-point attempts during March Madness so far. Proctor was a five-star recruit coming out of high school. Before his sophomore season in college, many scouts thought he could become a top-five pick, but he had a down year and was forced to return to Duke for a third season.
Now, Proctor’s potential is starting to come to fruition, and he is restoring his draft stock with each passing game. Duke’s basketball team is the championship favorite this year, so Proctor will likely be in the spotlight for a few more games. The point guard was projected as a second-rounder before the NCAA Tournament, but perhaps he will regain some first-round buzz.
Egor Demin, BYU, PG
Egor Demin is a 6-foot-9 guard with an incredible playmaking knack. The knock against Demin this season has been his 3-point jump shot. He has only shot 28.1% from deep this season. However, Demin is proving that he is a much better shooter than the numbers show.
The jumbo guard went 3-7 from deep in the first round before making two more 3-pointers in round two. Not only are his shots landing, but he is shooting them with confidence and regularity. Non-shooters don’t get up shots with so much confidence and quickness like Demin currently has. Without many other offensive holes in his game, teams might be more confident to pick him in the top half of the draft lottery.
Demin’s BYU squad is still alive, and they play Alabama in their next game. Another couple more good shooting games will solidify Demin’s draft standing.
LJ Cryer, Houston, SG
LJ Cryer is a known commodity. He was predicted as one of the best players in college basketball heading into the season, and he has lived up to the hype. Cryer averaged double-digit scoring marks for the fourth straight season this year. Nobody doubts his skill at the collegiate level, but NBA scouts will be forced to take notice if he keeps producing.
Cryer scored 30 points in his most recent game with Houston. Cryer has been the best deep shooter in the Big 12 for three straight seasons, but he keeps adding more and more scoring moves to his arsenal.
A championship run isn’t out of the question for Cryer’s squad. Regardless of what he does going forward, he has done enough to warrant being drafted in the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft.
JT Toppin, Texas Tech, PF
JT Toppin and Texas Tech have one each of their first two March Madness games, and now they will face the lowest-seeded team remaining, number 10-ranked Arkansas, in the Sweet 16. Toppin is a double-double machine, and that has been on display during the NCAA Tournament.
He had 12 points and 11 rebounds against UNC Wilmington before he upped those numbers to 25 points and 12 rebounds against Drake. Toppin was a Second-Team All-American this season, and he is only a sophomore. For some reason, he still finds himself near the bottom of the first round in most mock drafts. His March Madness run is helping him improve his draft stock, and he could contend for selection in the teens if he keeps his play up.
Braden Smith, Purdue, PG
Purdue made the national championship last season with Zach Edey leading the way. Braden Smith was instrumental in operating the Boilermakers’ offense, though. Still, a lot of fans expected a big drop for Purdue this season with Edey in the NBA. Smith has kept the team’s offense running smooth in 2024-25.
Smith is a true maestro who thrives in the pick-and-roll, and he has his team in the Sweet 16 yet again. Pure point guards aren’t as prevalent in the NBA as they once were, but a playmaker like Smith could still be coveted. Smith was second in the nation in assists per game this season (8.5), but he is showing that he can score when need be, too. Smith had 20 points in Purdue’s first-round matchup against High Point.
V.J Edgecombe, Baylor, SG
Cooper Flagg is the consensus number one overall pick, but with Harper and Bailey not in the March Madness field, V.J. Edgecombe was presented an opportunity to prove that he deserves to go number two. While both of the Rutgers stars still might have the slight draft edge over Edgecombe, the Baylor star has cemented his case as a top-five pick.
Edgecombe’s shooting and athletic combination was on display in both of Baylor’s NCAA Tournament games. Unfortunately, he just happened to get matched up against Duke and their plethora of NBA Draft prospects – including Flagg – in round two. Edgecombe held his own despite his team being significantly outmatched. Edgecombe had a good tournament, and his athletic traits should lead to him only rising up draft boards during the pre-draft process.
The post 10 March Madness stars whose 2025 NBA Draft stock is shooting to moon appeared first on ClutchPoints.
