Good morning, I’m Tyler Lauletta, and despite solid measurables, a decent jumper and an undeniable grit, I once again went undrafted in the first round of the NBA draft.

In today’s SI:AM: 

🏀First round grades

🏌️Hot putter fizzles
🏉Burrow’s ammo

Five notes from the 2025 NBA draft…

The first round of the 2025 NBA draft is in the books. The brotherhood of the NBA welcomed 30 new members on Wednesday night, all of whom hope to write their own great chapter in the history of the sport.

Judging a draft class is a process that takes years, not hours, and we won’t know the true ramifications of many of the decisions made last night for at least a season, if not longer. But that said, here are five moments I’ll remember from the first round and will be keeping an eye on moving forward.

You want Cooper Flagg on your team.

To the surprise of absolutely no one, the Dallas Mavericks selected Cooper Flagg with the first pick of the 2025 draft, a move that officially closes the book on the Luka era of the franchise and turns the page to what’s next. But Flagg’s biggest star-making moments of the night, for my money, came not with his selection, but in his reaction to the selections of his Duke teammates. Flagg was absolutely locked in, cheering on fellow Blue Devils Kon Knueppel and Khaman Maluach as they found their new homes.

No matter what happens, getting over the sting of losing Luka is going to take a while for Mavs fans. But between his game and his character, Flagg is an ideal replacement for a lost star.

Ace Bailey and the Jazz roll the dice on each other.

Ace Bailey took a risk when he decided not to work out for teams ahead of the draft. The Utah Jazz took a risk by deciding that didn’t matter. Reports from last night indicated that Utah was not on Bailey’s list of preferred destinations, although Bailey refuted that when asked. Meanwhile, the Jazz reportedly do not plan on trading Bailey. This fit could work if Bailey allows it to—there are few teams in the NBA where his impact would be as immediately felt as in Utah. While the Jazz might not have been on Bailey's radar, having co-owner Dwyane Wade and his guidance available to him throughout his development isn't a bad deal.

Yang Hansen bet on himself and won.

Yang Hansen was not one of the players invited to the draft, so he invited himself. When he was selected with the pick No. 16, he stood up from the crowd of the Barclays Center and walked to the stage. Hansen’s selection was so unexpected that ESPN commentators Stephen A. Smith and Bob Myers both admitted to not being prepared with a scouting report. But per NBA insider Jake Fischer, there are plenty of folks in the NBA that have high expectations for the young player.

That’s a pretty big comp to live up to, but for now, congratulations to a young player who clearly made the right call to be in Brooklyn on Wednesday night. Best of luck in Portland.

The Nets really kept all of those picks.

Entering the night with a whopping five first-round selections, it felt inevitable that the Nets would be wheeling and dealing, either packaging a few picks to move up a few spots or trading some of this year’s draft capital away in exchange for future picks. Instead, the Nets just…drafted five players in the first round. There might be something to the strategy—if you grab five players who each have a 20% chance of becoming a superstar, the odds are in your favor. But it will undoubtedly be interesting to watch Brooklyn through the offseason as they get their new rookies up to speed.

Scott Van Pelt is right about the hat situation.

We know that there will be trades on draft night. So how is it that we still have players taking the stage on the biggest night of their lives to shake hands with the commissioner while wearing the wrong hat? The amount of times the ESPN desk had to explain, “Now, this player was selected by this team, but his draft rights will actually go to another team when this deal goes through,” was astounding.

There simply has to be a better way. Shout out to Scott Van Pelt for not letting the fact that he’s on the network broadcasting the draft hold him back from a very fair critique. 

The best of Sports Illustrated

  • Chris Mannix highlights that Flagg’s “uncanny skill set” — combining top-tier athleticism, elite basketball IQ and remarkable composure — signals a limitless NBA ceiling, making him a generational talent ready to contribute immediately.
  • Kevin Sweeney hands out the grades for the selections made in Wednesday night’s first round of the NBA draft.
  • Dan Evans writes that the Odyssey Versa Jailbird putter surged to prominence in 2023—helping three PGA Tour pros win titles—but its rapid rise ultimately stalled, and its hype has since cooled.
  • In the latest installment of 32 Teams in 32 Days, Gilberto Manzano writes that the Bengals are entering 2025 with a top‑tier offense led by Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins, but lingering contract issues on defense threaten to limit their playoff ceiling.
  • Matt Verderame reports the Seahawks are betting big on Sam Darnold to lead a revamped offense and contend for the NFC West title in 2025.
  • Hosted by Jimmy Traina, the latest SI Media Podcast features Richard Deitsch unpacking the Stephen A. Smith backlash, bizarre NBA Finals ratings, Caitlin Clark’s influence, Deitsch’s return to Twitter, and John Cena’s heel turn.

The top five…

…things I saw last night…

5. The Knueppel brothers have reality television written all over them.
4. Someone please help Elle Duncan find Cooper Flagg on the red carpet.
3. Jacob Misiorowski vs. Oneil Cruz is why we love baseball.
2. Good job by White Sox fans on lifting up Ketel Marte.
1. Jose Trevino keeps stealing his former teammates’ walk-up songs.

More on Sports Illustrated


This article was originally published on www.si.com as SI:AM | Five Notes From the NBA Draft.

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