Drake Powell selected No. 22 overall by Nets (via Hawks) | 2025 NBA Draft Grades & Instant Reaction

Drake Powell selected No. 22 overall by Nets (via Hawks) | 2025 NBA Draft Grades & Instant Reaction

and a player from North Carolina is the next pick headed to the Brooklyn Nets unc’s Drake Powell uh look this is um this is also I don’t know what to think make me give me something here that I’m supposed to think about this pick here for for the Nets cuz I’m starting to wonder if the Brooklyn Nets are going to end up in that category biggest winners and losers on the night they’re going to end up in the losers column do you want to do the grade no I don’t but that’s your job because you’re going to be the one you’re going to be giving the people on social media here we go um I I would say this i I think that I think this is a little bit of a reach i I mean he’s the upside again is a three and D wing but the offense is not there yet the shooting is not there the offense in general is not there he’s a good athlete he’s got long arms he defends he’s a high character kid he’s about all the right things the theme of this class for Brooklyn when you look at Jayore Demon Nolan Trayor and Drake Powell I walk away thinking they think they can develop shooters with their player development program because if these three guys all shoot the ball then they’ll all be fine but those are the question marks for every single player they’ve taken so far and with with Demon’s question marks and the defensive end of the floor as well um those things are are starting to to multiply but again if he shoots he’ll be okay but he’s not NBA ready right now he’s not going to help him win next year matt the first three picks here for Brooklyn uh Jagor Deon and then Nolan Trayor and now Drake Powell how would you grade how would you describe their draft class to this point it has the potential to be a huge bust but it also has the potential to look like one of the smartest draft classes four or five years down the road if these guys hit but these are big swings powell here is interesting uh my sources were telling me that Atlanta was looking strongly at coincidentally enough was looking strongly at Pal in this spot to begin with and Acea Newell but obviously Atlanta is finding and I get why Atlanta is doing this they are they are now moving back twice here in the first round because they are quite clearly of the belief that the guys that are going to be available in the back end of the first round and then when we get to the draft in the second round on Thursday are basically just as impactful if not better than the guys that are being moved up and giving up assets to to get into this spot i’ve been consistent on this with Drake Powell since he declared for the draft the irony for me here with Drake Pal is this listeners to the Iron College basketball podcast heard it all leading into last college basketball season i thought Drake Powell was going to be one of the seven to 10 best freshman in the country last season i loved him coming into North Carolina ironically enough I didn’t think that this was a wise decision to go after one year because I thought he had a chance to come back to Carolina as a sophomore and turn himself into a pure no doubt about it top 20 maybe even a lottery pick but guess what i was wrong because Powell he impressed majorly in workouts the athleticism is undeniable there’s really a belief that he can grow into a top 10 perimeter defender as a guard in the league and he justified his decision by getting drafted this high now will the fit be good are we going to get to the end of this first round is Brooklyn going to trade any of these picks i guess that waits and remains to be seen but from an athleticism standpoint from an approach standpoint IQ standpoint the interviews they came back all well but I ju I’m with Adam on this i think we like Drake Powell in theory but what does he become in the next two three four years and unfortunately as Adam will tell you as well when you get into this range of the draft and even earlier you’re often drafting not for a player that you’re gonna have like they might what Brooklyn might be doing here with Drake Pal is drafting to develop him and then eventually some years down the road send him somewhere else where he will grow into the player that Brooklyn hopes he will be to begin with but is unlikely to be in the next few years where are we grading this pick c++ okay it’s a swing it’s all a swing if if I didn’t have more faith in if I It’s only because of the faith in their player development program that I’m not being more critical i hope it hits for him me too i hope it does i hope it hits for him our producer is a Brooklyn Nets fan he’s He sounds uh Well that’s a good reason to keep it at a C++ though he sounds a little distraught right now so I’m going to try to get everybody excited again

Adam Finkelstein, Gary Parrish, and Avery Johnson join CBS Sports HQ to grade Drake Powell being drafted by the Brooklyn Nets via the Atlanta Hawks at No. 22 overall.

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