There are a lot of things to look forward to in the 2024-25 NBA season. However, there will be a handful of teams and their fans who are already looking ahead to the upcoming 2025 NBA Draft.

There is a good reason for that. The 2025 NBA Draft class looks absolutely loaded. At the very least, there should be plenty of players near the top of the class who could prove to be game-changers to the franchises that land them.

At this moment in time, there are six players at the top who have separated themselves from the pack, to varying degrees. Cooper Flagg, Airious Bailey, VJ Edgecombe, Nolan Traore, Dylan Harper, and Hugo Gonzalez are projecting themselves as the headliners of the upcoming draft.

However, it should be obvious to most fans that talent can only go so far. Sometimes a highly-touted prospect can have their career be derailed for any reason. Injuries tend to be a common suspect in this case. Greg Oden offers a good example of that.

Sometimes it can simply come down to the landing spot of where an individual ends up. If one were to take the time and go through previous NBA Drafts, it should not be too difficult to identify players who were victims of their environment.

A poor front office, coaching staff, etc. can really stunt the development of any young player. The best of the best can sometimes overcome those circumstances. However, for a lot of talented young players, the fit of their environment matters a lot.

With that in mind, it would be interesting to look ahead to the 2025 NBA Draft and do a little matchmaker for the top prospects. There is a general understanding or expectation already of whom some of the rebuilding teams will be in 2024-25.

There are a few teams who could naturally provide great environments for multiple players here. For the sake of this article, each potential fit (in terms of the landing spot) will be limited to one prospect.

6 Hugo Gonzalez (Wing – Real Madrid)

Best fit: Detroit Pistons

The Detroit Pistons did a pretty serious makeover this offseason. General manager Troy Weaver and head coach Monty Williams were both shown the exit door.

The good news for the Pistons is that the new regime in Detroit has made some efforts to strengthen the shooting around their star point guard, Cade Cunningham. They acquired players like Malik Beasley, Tobias Harris, and Tim Hardaway Jr. to help fix the atrocious spacing issues that the team had.

Those additions are good ones and should help the team in the 2024-25 season. Cunningham could finally be poised for a breakout season in the upcoming campaign.

However, those are band-aid solutions for the most part. The Pistons will need to think about the long term once the 2025 NBA Draft comes around.

While there may be some reason to believe they can be a part of the NBA Play-In Tournament in 2024-25, it would be a bit surprising to see the Pistons play themselves out of a chance to be high in the lottery once more.

Should they have the opportunity to select near the top of the draft, Hugo Gonzalez could be the team’s long-term answer at the shooting guard position.

Gonzalez looks to be one of the most promising defenders in the 2025 draft class. He has also displayed a knack for attacking the rim effectively.

His numbers from beyond the arc do not suggest he is a great shooter yet. However, his shooting mechanics look good and his free throw percentage (92.9) suggests that he will eventually develop in that regard.

A duo of Cunningham and Gonzalez should give the Pistons a strong foundation moving forward.

5 Dylan Harper (Guard – Rutgers)

Best fit: Washington Wizards

The Washington Wizards embraced a full rebuild last season. They had a busy 2024 NBA Draft, walking away with Alexandre Sarr, Carlton Carrington, and Kyshawn George in the first round.

The Wizards are putting together a good young core in Washington. However, their rebuild currently lacks a highly-touted prospect who can project as the team’s number one option moving forward. That should be where Dylan Harper comes in.

Kyle Kuzma wound up being the team’s leading scorer this past season. Kuzma is approaching 30 years old and may not be in Washington for the long haul. Even if he is, Kuzma is not the number one option that a team is built around.

Harper could be. Being the son of a former NBA player has certainly given him some advantages. Harper has an incredible feel for the offensive end.

The combo guard should have the ability to slot into either spot in the backcourt, allowing the Wizards some flexibility in how they choose to build around him.

4 Nolan Traore (Guard – Saint-Quentin)

Best fit: Brooklyn Nets

The Brooklyn Nets desperately need a long-term solution at the lead guard position. Nolan Traore should be the player who can take those reins.

Dennis Schröder was a good acquisition at last year’s deadline, but he is better-suited to the backup role. Ben Simmons is an absolute wild card that is unreliable.

Traore has room to grow on the defensive side of the basketball court leading up to the 2025 NBA Draft. However, he should provide a major boost to the Nets offense and should be given the keys to the castle from day one.

The good news for the Nets is that they should project to have a lot of cap space in next year’s free agency class. They can remodel the roster around Traore as needed.

3 VJ Edgecombe (Wing – Baylor)

Best fit: Utah Jazz

It does not feel as though the Utah Jazz are too far from finishing their rebuild. However, similarly to the Wizards, there is not a true number one option on the team.

Lauri Markkanen is a talented player and should be a building block for the Jazz after signing a massive extension this offseason, but it is tough to envision him as the leading man on a contending team.

VJ Edgecombe is a young prospect who was outshining NBA pros during the Olympic Qualifying Tournament. Buddy Hield, Edgecombe’s teammate on the Bahamas national squad, commented on the talented youngster’s game.

Positionally, this fit makes a lot of sense too. The Jazz could benefit from having their potential franchise star being a talented wing, given what they already have in place. They have a good number of young pieces that should fit around him well.

2 Airious Bailey (Wing – Rutgers)

Best fit: Toronto Raptors

Airious Bailey has tremendous upside as a three-level scorer. He has drawn comparisons to the likes of Kevin Durant and Tracy McGrady leading up to his first college season.

The Toronto Raptors have not had an elite player of that mold since Kawhi Leonard. With their current young core, this is exactly the kind of archetype that could push them over the top in their rebuild.

The Raptors had the 24th-ranked offensive rating in the halfcourt during the 2023-24 season, according to Statmuse. Adding a guy who can develop into a reliable isolation scorer in the NBA would quickly put the Raptors back into the playoff picture.

Pairing that kind of player with the versatile, do-it-all star that is Scottie Barnes is an exciting fit. The pairing could eventually turn out to be a championship-level duo for the Raptors.

1 Cooper Flagg (Forward – Duke)

Best fit: Charlotte Hornets

This subject has already been covered by GIVEMESPORT. Realistically, Flagg would probably be a game-changing prospect, no matter the destination. However, having him land with the Charlotte Hornets is a particularly intriguing fit.

The duo of LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller is already a pairing that could cause the Hornets to jump up the standings. If they have one last bad season in them, bad enough to land Flagg, then they would truly be set for the future.

The fit between the three potential stars is seamless and very complimentary of each player’s skill set. They would be a trio that could run the Eastern Conference for a very long time once everyone enters their prime.

Stats are courtesy of Basketball Reference, NBA.com and Statmuse.