Rockets Land Prized Scorer in 2025 Mock Draft

Anthony Duckett | Jul 25, 2024

Mar 16, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka talks to his team during a Cleveland Cavaliers time-out in the second half at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports / Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports

The 2025 NBA Draft will be drastically different from this year's draft. All year, we'd heard teams voice their dissatisfaction with the class, as it lacked a surefire franchise player, by all accounts.

If the Summer League is any indication (which it shouldn't be), many of the top players will take time to develop. 

Next year's draft class features Cooper Flagg, perhaps one of the best prospects of the decade. We've already seen the proof, as teams have been jockeying and positioning for a shot at Flagg.

The Brooklyn Nets reacquired their original draft pick from the Houston Rockets, as they expect to be a tanking team and would like to have an opportunity to land Flagg.

Granted, it's a big risk in a lottery system like what the NBA uses, as there's no guarantee that a team will land the top overall pick, even if they intentionally try to lose.

We've seen this countless times.

In fact, Bleacher Report released their first mock draft for the 2025 draft class and have Flagg going elsewhere. As for the Rockets, they walk away with a a high-scoring forward, who ranked 26th in the nation in his senior year in Karter Knox.

"Karter Knox followed head coach John Calipari to Arkansas after originally committing to Kentucky. He'll now have to stand out in an experienced rotation with decorated guards, bigs and forwards.

Still, even if his role remains limited compared to most other lottery picks, his positional strength, attacking and confident shotmaking should still pop.

Knox will likely have to sell them with flashes rather than consistent production while playing in a lineup with D.J. Wagner, Johnell Davis, Trevon Brazile, Jonas Aidoo, Adou Thiero, Zvonimir Ivišić and fellow freshman Boogie Fland. But he should be capable of impressing with those flashes of scoring versatility skill for a 6'6", 225-pound, 19-year-old wing."

Knox starred in the Overtime Elite, much like Amen Thompson- the Rockets- fourth overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. 

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