Way-Too-Early 2025 NBA Mock Draft: Houston Rockets Make Odd Selection

Will the Rockets be drafting in the lottery once again?

Mar 12, 2024; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka watches the second half of play against the San Antonio Spurs at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports / Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports

The 2024 NBA Draft cycle has finally come to a close as the two-day event is in the past, and rookies have since made their way to their respective markets and begun speaking with the media as members of the team.

In the short term, the focus will be turned toward free agency and making trades. For the Houston Rockets, building off a 41-41 season and improving the roster is the priority as the playoffs could soon be on their way.

The Rockets, in particular, are a team to watch for a big trade to acquire a star player as their 19-win improvement last season has them yearning for more talent.

In the big picture, draft analysts are already taking a look at the 2025 NBA Draft class, though projections are hard to make. Teams can look substantially different from now to next week at a similar time. Still, CBS Sports' Gary Parrish released a way-too-early mock draft for the next cycle.

In the mock draft, the Rockets are selecting in the late lottery, which would mean another near-playoff miss. While that result would be underwhelming, they'd be able to select a strong talent as the next draft pool holds much more talent than the previous.

With the No. 12 pick in the mock draft, the Rockets land Collin Murray-Boyles out of South Carolina. The 6-foot-7 forward just completed his freshman season with the Gamecocks, starting in 19 of his 28 appearances in his first season. He averaged 10.4 points and 5.8 rebounds, though his 3-point shot was non-existent.

"Despite being a sub-100 prospect in the Class of 2023, Murray-Boyles emerged as a legitimate NBA prospect during his freshman year at South Carolina, where he averaged 10.4 points and 5.7 rebounds in 22.8 minutes per game. The 6-7 combo forward might need to show growth as a shooter over the next year to secure a spot in the lottery, but Murray-Boyles is already very much on front offices' radars in part because of his defensive versatility," Parrish wrote.

Drafting a non-shooter doesn't feel viable for Houston at this time. Unless they go all-in for a star and reconstruct their roster around him, landing someone like Murray-Boyles would feel counterproductive.

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