For the better part of Brad Stevens’ tenure as Boston Celtics president of basketball operations, draft picks have been a bit of an afterthought. Stevens didn’t make a first-round pick in his first three years at the helm,

The most recent deal involving picks in this year's draft was between the Indiana Pacers and New Orleans Pelicans. The Pacers reacquired their 2026 first-rounder from the Pelicans in exchange for the No. 23 selection and the rights to guard Mojave King, who was a 2023 second-round pick.

Our NBA mock drafts lean heavily on intel to make projections for the players and the 30 teams. This mock draft, with Cooper Flagg as the projected No. 1 pick, isn't like the others. Instead, ESPN draft analysts Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo explored the first round of the 2025 NBA draft from two differing perspectives: selecting for team need versus drafting for best available.