2025 NBA Draft Watch: European Prospects (First-Round Candidates)

With the NCAA and other leagues worldwide officially in full swing, NBA scouts are now hard at work looking for their teams’ next potential star and core pieces. As a part of Sports Business Classroom’s 2025 NBA Draft series, the following is the first part of European prospects to watch ahead of June’s draft. 

Nolan Traoré is among the top prospects from overseas leagues on most draft boards. Many evaluators viewed him as high as a top-5 pick until a recent slump. Traoré is a ball-dominant combo guard whose athleticism and fluid ball-handling allow him to draw defenses and make plays. He’s a high-usage player but an inefficient scorer now, which may be the consequence of him adjusting his dominant style of play to the pros. Traoré produces nearly five assists on a respectable two-to-one assist-turnover ratio. Still, most of his dimes come from drive-and-kick situations, so he’s more of a slashing type than a traditional table setter. So far, his scoring outbursts alternate with droughts. On some nights, he may dominate the game and break down defenses with his explosiveness; on other nights, he’s replaced by less talented but more reliable contributors down the stretch. However, his flashes like a record 45 points at the ANGT Finals or a 20+10 double-double in the French league stick in the memory. Shooting has never been Traoré’s superpower and will likely be his deciding factor. Nonetheless, his physical profile tells he belongs to the NBA—it’s just a matter of role.

The German club Ratiopharm Ulm maintains its reputation as one of the best destinations for young players to develop their talents and prepare for the draft. Prospects are given many chances, while the club is among the German league and EuroCup contenders, considered at a borderline elite level in Europe. Last year, Juan Núñez and Pacôme Dadiet were selected from Ratiopharm in the draft.

Ben Saraf is a different prospect to Juan Núñez, who he replaced at the point, but they have one significant similarity in their game: creative passing. Saraf is taller than Nunez and projects more upside in his pull-up game, which made him a surprising MVP at the FIBA U18 European Championship, while his team only finished in fourth place. He excels at changing pace and loves to attack from mid-range, sometimes taking deep contested shots, but this is where his scoring potential shines. Unfortunately, it doesn’t provide the same efficiency as a three-pointer, where Saraf currently converts at a modest twenty-eight percent on 2.6 attempts. His weak left hand and lack of athleticism prevent him from being considered at the very top of the draft but his basketball IQ and feel for the game suggest he may find a way to flourish.

 

Noa Essengue is still growing into his body but has an intriguing yet mysterious upside like Aleksej Pokuševski’s once was. Essengue has just turned 18, and his role is yet to be determined, but he has shown versatility throughout his young career, playing as a wing and a big man. Currently, he’s a work-in-progress and more of a defensive prospect who has long strides to make on the offensive side of the game. His shooting touch has always been a red flag, so he feeds off cuts and putbacks, but numbers show he can be prolific with it, averaging 10 points playing in the low 20s. If he at least starts hitting open threes consistently and becomes a more determined and accurate ball-handler in open court, good things may come to him in the NBA, but teams shouldn’t expect it to come too early.

Hugo Gonzalez is one of the main stars of his age group in Europe. He led Real Madrid’s youth team to two consecutive ANGT championships, playing the first scoring option on a team with Egor Demin (who is currently ranked higher on most draft boards). Gonzalez is a dynamic 6’8 swingman with a strong and athletic body, at least by European standards. He’s an aggressive, open-court slasher who can play above the rim (like young Rudy Fernandez) and finish with finesse. A prolific scorer, Gonzalez has upside as a shooter, but numbers don’t do him well so far. Even so, he plays hard, has a good feel for the game and is an excellent rebounder for his position. Gonzalez doesn’t play many minutes on Real Madrid’s senior team. Still, he gets to experience what it’s like to play for a perennial contender and grind out minutes from EuroLeague superstars. His numbers don’t pop now, and his efficiency metrics are low, but his production is on display when he’s given more play against smaller clubs in the Spanish league. He should see strong first-round consideration, regardless of season stats. 

Michael Ružić profiles as every team in the NBA is looking for—a low-maintenance 6’10” Swiss Army Knife who can stretch the floor and guard multiple positions. Coming off a breakout rookie season, when Ružić showed impressive discipline and efficiency for a 17-year-old playing in the best domestic league in Europe, he was considered a first-round prospect entering this season. However, while his defense remained stellar, his shooting faced a drop to a disastrous 44-27-30 percent through eight games after 52-41-68 percent through forty-one the year before. Once Ruzic finally got his confidence back, scoring double digits in two consecutive games on 9-16 from the field, he got injured the next game with a ruptured tendon in his thumb that required surgery and has kept him sidelined since then. Nevertheless, with half of a season ahead, Ružić remains in consideration as a first-rounder, but it would require a bounce-back performance, statistically and, more importantly, mentally. Eventually, Ružić has the tools to become a high-level 3-and-D wing like Jaden McDaniels, unless his development is stunned with injuries like was recently the case for a fellow Croatian prospect Roko Prkačin, who has never played up to the expectations after surgery to repair tendons in his foot at a similar stage of his career.