We are less than three months away from the start of the 2025 NBA Draft, where the Miami Heat currently project to have first-round picks.
On Saturday, we went over nine potential prospects–eight from my “25 For 25,” plus one additional name–to keep tabs on during the Elite 8. Today, we will be doing our second Miami Heat mock draft roundup of this draft cycle.
We were fortunately able to compile more mock draft boards. The earliest ones I selected were at the start of March. But since they were all done on different dates, the draft positions will inevitably be different.
Who do the pundits have the Heat selecting at this point in time? Let’s dive into it!
CBS Sports (Adam Finkelstein):
No. 8: Jase Richardson, G, Michigan State
“This is admittedly higher than I have Richardson on my big board, but Miami is a really good fit given their needs on the perimeter and a chance to grow into Tyler Herro’s running mate. Richardson has exceeded all expectations this season with the overlap of his versatility and efficiency. There’s one sentiment that he could have been even better with more volume, but my take is that the role was ideal for his stock to thrive, which it undeniably has.”
No. 21: Carter Bryant, F, Arizona
“Bryant should certainly consider returning to school. There’s a real chance he falls in the second round and he’d also have a chance to play his way into the lottery as a sophomore. He’s intriguing though because he has a great frame, defends, passes, and has made important strides with his shooting. If he keeps developing, he could be a nice fit with Bam and Kel’el Ware on the frontline.”
Yahoo Sports (Kevin O’Connor):
No. 8: Tre Johnson, G, Texas
“Tyler Herro became an All-Star this season, showing his ability as a combo guard. But he needs a backcourt partner. Johnson is a clutch shot-maker who can catch fire from all over the floor, drilling step-backs and off-screen jumpers with ease. But he needs to continue developing his point-guard skills while also honing his shot selection and dramatically improving his defense. Maybe there’s too much of the same thing between Herro and Johnson, but Johnson has flashed some playmaking skills that could emerge in the Miami system.”
No. 21: Will Riley, F, Illinois
“Riley has dynamic driving ability and playmaking instincts that scream upside as a jumbo-sized, shot-creating wing. Selecting him would follow the same philosophy that the Heat took with Kel’el Ware, betting that their culture and developmental success could maximize Riley’s talents. But his jumper is streaky, and his defense is unreliable since he is so lean physically and lacks fundamentals.”
Bleacher Report (Jonathan Wasserman):
No. 8: Jase Richardson, G, Michigan State
“A rare off-game from Jase Richardson against New Mexico won’t set off any alarms. Part of the reason he’d become so well regarded was because of his consistency. Even without a high-usage role, he had been a reliable source for shotmaking, finishing and high-energy plays.
It’s also become clearer by the month that he offers more creativity than the early numbers suggest. While he’s been incredibly efficient off the ball, he’s also been one of the nation’s most efficient ball-screen scorers thanks to his feel on drives, elite finishing and 49.1 percent pull-up shooting.”
No. 21: Nique Clifford, G/F, Colorado State
“Nique Clifford’s 21 points, seven boards and six assists weren’t enough to hold off Maryland. But his overall production and development from a year ago definitely won more NBA scouts.
Clifford had come off as a prospect to watch this season based on his ability to play a Swiss Army knife role by finishing plays, passing, defending different spots and making enough open threes. But he quickly turned into a top-option skill player who can get his own shot or serve as the offense’s playmaker.”
SB Nation (Ricky O’Donnell):
No. 8: Tre Johnson, G, Texas
Johnson has a case as both the best shooter and best takeover scorer in this draft class. The 6’6 off-ball guard led all DI freshmen in scoring (20.2 points per game) despite playing in the SEC, the best conference in America. Johnson shot 39.7 percent from from three on a high-volume of attempts (224), which is even more impressive considering he was the No. 1 name on every opposing scouting report. Johnson can get tunnel vision at times and doesn’t usually fill the box score in other categories, but he’s decent enough as a passer and on-ball defender to make him more than a specialist. Johnson often exhibits an intense on-court mentality that should make him a perfect fit in Heat Culture playing off Tyler Herro.”
No. 21: Adou Thiero, F, Arkansas
“Thiero is a wrecking ball as a mismatch forward with explosive athleticism, but sadly he’s missed Arkansas’ Sweet 16 run with a knee injury. The junior has a great frame at 6’7 with a 7-foot wingspan and plenty of speed, strength, and power baked in. He flies around defensively getting blocks and steals, and always brings a lot of energy. Offensively, Thiero is a good cutter and interior finisher who hammed home 45 dunks in 26 games this season. He’s not much of a shooter or ball handler yet, but Thiero makes the most of his size and athleticism thanks to his hustle.”
ESPN (Jonathan Givony, Jeremy Woo):
No. 12: Jase Richardson, G, Michigan State
“Miami’s playoff aspirations unsurprisingly took a hit after trading Jimmy Butler III to Golden State at the deadline, going 4-11 since making the move. BPI gives the Heat a 57.5% chance of missing the playoffs, in which case they would keep their top-14 protected pick and convey their 2026 first-rounder unprotected to Oklahoma City. Richardson seems like the kind of young guard prospect the Heat could be attracted to, and there could be a strong fit here with an obvious need in the backcourt.”
No. 22: Will Riley, F, Illinois
“The Heat acquired this pick from the Warriors in the Jimmy Butler III trade, guaranteeing them at least one first-rounder in this draft depending what happens with their own selection. With Miami retooling around Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, and emerging center Kel’el Ware, developing a player such as Riley to eventually boost their offense on the wing could be an attractive fit.”
Tankathon:
No. 11: Jeremiah Fears, G, Oklahoma
No. 20: Rasheer Fleming, F, St. Joseph’s
Sports Illustrated (Draft Digest Staff):
No. 8: Jeremiah Fears, G, Oklahoma
No. 21: Noah Penda, F, France
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Reason number 3,276 that you don’t mortgage your team’s future to bring in 36 year old (37 in September) Kevin Durant. Phoenix screwed up big time bringing him and Beale in. Oh well.
https://www.yardbarker.com/nba/articles/suns_kevin_durant_goes_down_with_a_gruesome_looking_ankle_injury/s1_127_41980847
Get my boy Walter Clayton Jr on this team. He bleeds Heat culture and confidence.
3 teams reaching 140+ pts today 🤯
Suns receiving the unenviable deficit of almost 40pts vs Rockets while still having KD and Booker in the lineup. Dunno which team is in a worse situation, Suns or Sixers after being dubbed a “contender” at the start of the season.
i know you all wanna share this (dream) scenario…Heat gets booted in play-in after winning all if not majority of their remaining games (just for the thrill of it). gets Flagg in draft lol. imagine Ware, Bam, Herro, Wiggins, Flagg starting 5! BOOM! you’re welcome 😁😂
Or the other dream most of y’all have on here on Mia making this magical run to the finals and winning it all. Nothing more delusional than that, or lemme guess you just want them to make the playoffs for them to get bounced in 4 5 maybe 6 games
Semi-delusional maybe. Heat made the finals a few seasons ago with a 3% chance. Can it happen again? For me I don’t think so but even 1% chance is still a chance. My question is what’s the better % here…getting at least to ecf (if Heat makes playoffs) OR getting the top pick (if they bomb out after play-in)? Either way its a big reach but never zero chance. At least that’s the way I see it.
The difference though is even if you don’t get the top pick, you still get something good. Lose in the playoffs and you get nothing.
You get the shaft and the rich get richer. OKC (arguably already the best team in the NBA) gets our pick, plus a few others. OKC has 11 first-round picks through 2030. That includes four in the 2025 draft. OKC has its own 2025 first-round pick, which it can swap with either Houston (top-10 protected) or the Los Angeles Clippers. It also has a top-14 protected Miami pick, a top-10 protected Utah pick and Philadelphia’s top-six protected pick.
To be honest, if the team has found it’s “Mojo” and finishes off the season strong, gets through the playoffs and shows a valiant effort against Cleveland or Boston, but loses, I’ll be OK with that. They will lose the draft pick to OKC, but they will get the pick in 2026 instead.
More importantly, they will have their “Mojo”, pride and dignity back heading into the summer in anticipation of a better season in 2025-2026.
I don’t see a big elevation of the team’s overall talent until 2026-2027, after several players come off the books (e.g., Rozier, Robinson, Anderson, Love and possibly others). That will give Spo another season to develop the players on rookie contracts and determine which ones the team should keep, trade or not re-sign after their contracts expire.
I’m not getting too excited about the draft until we know how many picks we are getting and the selection order. More accurate player rankings won’t be out until after the NCAA Finals.
I would like to see Miami draft a PG with a high ceiling and a physical PF/C who can fit in the rotation with Ware and Bam.
Derrick queen if Mia gets in that 8-9 range
Walter Clayton with that warriors pick if both are still there
After the first 3-4 or so, draft projections are all over the place. If Miami ends up with a high lottery pick (11-12), I think there are several players currently ranked in the middle of the lottery, who will drop to the 10-15 levels. Likewise, several players currently ranked in the 15-20 range may drop to the 21-25 level. We’ll get a better feel for Miami’s options after the play-in round.