The NBA season doesn’t start for the Dallas Mavericks until October 24th, as they’re currently in the middle of the preseason, but it’s never too early for mock drafts. The Mavs are expected to be one of the best teams in the NBA this season, likely leaving them out of the race for Cooper Flagg, but it’s a talented draft class in 2025 with plenty of depth.

Sam Vecenie of The Athletic released his preseason NBA mock draft, more to get names out there than to match prospects with teams. But who he mocked to the Mavericks was an interesting fit. The “draft order” was set by win total projections.

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With the 23rd pick in the draft, Vecenie had the Mavericks taking Egor Demin, a five-star freshman at BYU originally from Russia.

Regarding the pick, Vecenia said, “This is higher than where I would have Demin. But much like with Maluach above, it wouldn’t quite be an accurate description of where scouts are at this stage if I didn’t rank him in the top 30. There is significant interest in Demin’s ability to be a 6-8 point guard and playmaker at BYU this season. Where I’m worried is that I’m not totally sure how he scores the basketball yet. At any level, he’s never proven the ability to finish consistently on the interior or knock down shots. He’s willing to take them, but there hasn’t been much efficiency. I believe in the passing and vision in a big way, and that’s why he shows up here. The novelty of a potential point guard at this size makes him one of the players I’m most interested in watching this season. But there are some real questions scouts are looking for him to answer, even with their interest levels.”

Demin would be an interesting fit in Dallas. Spencer Dinwiddie, Quentin Grimes, and Jaden Hardy are only under contract for this season, and the Mavericks could use a high-potential backup for Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. He has a similar frame as when Doncic entered the NBA, and both players played for Real Madrid, but his game isn’t at Doncic’s level from when he first entered the NBA.

Dallas owning their 2025 first-round pick in a talented draft opens a lot of possibilities, including trading it in the future if they can find a better player who can help them win right away.

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