Rockets Projected to Select Star Center in Latest NBA Mock Draft

The latest NBA mock draft from Bleacher Report has Houston taking a star center from the Big Ten.
Jan 29, 2025; College Park, Maryland, USA; Maryland Terrapins center Derik Queen (25) handles the ball during the second half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Xfinity Center. Mandatory Credit: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images
Jan 29, 2025; College Park, Maryland, USA; Maryland Terrapins center Derik Queen (25) handles the ball during the second half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Xfinity Center. Mandatory Credit: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images / Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

The 2025 NBA Draft is not the biggest concern for the Houston Rockets at the moment. The Rockets are 32-14 and hold the second seed in the Western Conference, building a championship-contending resume with the young core. In years past, the draft would be the top priority during the season, but now that they are ascending into title contention, the Rockets are expected to be picking late in the draft.

Houston does not own its first-round pick for 2025, as it will go to the Brooklyn Nets. Instead, the Rockets are projected to have the Phoenix Suns' selection this year. The Suns are 24-22 and the ninth seed in the West, which works better for Houston, considering the team has a better record. Phoenix is improving, so the pick will likely fall out of the lottery.

In Bleacher Report's latest NBA mock draft from Jonathan Wasserman, the Rockets are slated as the 18th pick in the first round. With that pick, they are projected to select Derik Queen from Maryland.

Queen is a 6-foot-10, 246-pound center for the Terrapins, averaging 15 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.2 steals, and one block per game. He is a bruiser but has also displayed a soft touch in the midrange while playing solid defense on the other end.

"Derik Queen's overall production and dominant games have been compelling enough for scouts to put less stock into his poor showings," Wasserman wrote. "And we've seen both sides of the performance spectrum lately, with Queen going 27 minutes without a field goal against Nebraska, only to follow with a 25-point game against Illinois."

The downsides of Queen are his 9.1% three-point percentage and his frame. He came into college with a unique body type, which poses a lot of risks for draft scouts. However, his offensive potential can't be denied.

The Rockets could use center depth, as that is the position in which they lack the most talent outside of Alperen Sengun. Queen could bolster the bench if Houston doesn't go after a center before the trade deadline and would immediately be a part of the young core.

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Jed Katz
JED KATZ

Jed is a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison majoring in journalism. He also contributes at several other basketball outlets, including has his own basketball blog and podcast — The Sixth Man Report.