Liam McNeeley Mock Draft Snapshot
UConn only has one player expected to be drafted on Wednesday in the 2025 NBA Draft: Liam McNeeley. The one-and-done from Richardson, Texas led the Huskies in per-game scoring, was second in rebounding, and third in assists. He was one of 24 players invited to sit at a table at the NBA Draft green room, which implies there is a very good chance he is selected in the first round of the draft on Wednesday night.
Dan, Kimani, and Luke will all be in attendance at the draft, as reported on our forum on 6/16.
A plethora of sites and blogs put out ‘Mock Drafts’ and ‘Big Boards’ this time of year. We’ve taken a selection of them from established outlets and highlighted where they have slotted McNeeley and why. We’ve prioritized mock drafts that focused on league intel and insider projections.
DraftExpress - Givony and Woo (updated 6/25):
20. Miami (via Golden State) - “He has interest all over the back half of the first round, including the Nets, Heat, and Jazz in this range.”
The Athletic - Sam Vecenie (updated 6/25):
16. Memphis Grizzlies (via ORL) - “Since acquiring this selection in the Desmond Bane deal, the Grizzlies have been scrambling to get players into their building since they only had late second-round picks before the trade. That makes it difficult to parse what they’ll do in this spot. McNeeley ticks a lot of the boxes for the Grizzlies, as he’s a high-end competitor who would provide needed shooting on the wing.”
Yahoo Sports - Kevin O’Connor (updated 6/24):
25. Orlando Magic (via DEN) - “...his feel as a connective passer gives him the skill to fit into any type of offense. This would allow him to be the perfect backup to Desmond Bane early in his career, or even share the floor in some lineup configurations.”
CBS Sports - Adam Finkelstein (updated 6/23):
16. Memphis Grizzlies (via ORL) - “Just three years after the Grizzlies drafted Jake LaRavia, McNeeley fills a similar archetype with more natural talent.”
The Ringer - J Kyle Mann (updated 6/24):
27. Brooklyn Nets (via Houston) - “Buying low could be a nice theme for Brooklyn in this draft. An additional theme could be taking players with advanced feel—and McNeeley, a savvy, ball-moving wing with size, would slot in well alongside Queen and Demin in that regard.”
USA Today / For the Win - Bryan Kalbrosky (updated 6/24):
25. Orlando Magic (via DEN) - “McNeeley is solid value at this point in the draft but should get consideration even higher.”
Vegas Odds
As a bonus, we can look at betting odds to see where the oddsmakers expect Liam to be drafted. As of Wednesday morning, he’s listed as +1300 to go in the top 10 (~7% chance) on Draftkings. They’ve set his over/under for draft position at 21.5, with more “juice” on the under. At Fanduel, he’s +100 to be a top 20 pick, which is close to what the books use for 50/50 odds.
Summary
Based on these mock drafts, Liam’s draft range is roughly 16-27. The sportsbooks list him around 20-22, and of our selected mocks, 3 have him in the top 20 and 3 have him around 25. 16 to Memphis with their newly acquired pick and 25 to Orlando came up multiple times, so pay extra attention if those teams are on the clock and Liam hasn’t been picked yet!