BYU's Egor Demin could be the biggest steal of the 2025 NBA Draft after declaring
The 2025 NBA Draft class is one of deepest in recent memory. Sure, there's the superstar, can't-miss prospects at the top, like Duke's Cooper Flagg, Rutgers' Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper, and Baylor's VJ Edgecombe.
But, there's a name you may not be as familiar with who could wind up being the steal of the draft on the right team: BYU's Egor Demin.
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Demin, 19, declared for the NBA Draft on Tuesday, according to ESPN's Jonathan Givony. He was one of the top prospects in his class, and has one of the most unique skillsets in all of college basketball.
The 6'9" point guard is a matchup nightmare on paper, with the kind of playmaking and passing acumen that make coaches drool. But his time in Provo was hardly the kind of smooth transition that other elite prospects had.
Demin struggled to find his footing in high-level college basketball this season. He was turnover prone, struggled on defense, and his outside shot wasn't falling for much of the year. He averaged just 10.6 points, but did manage 3.9 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game.
But scouts who followed Demin saw someone finding his legs by the time the NCAA Tournament rolled around. By the end of the season, the Russian looked much, much more comfortable, and he delivered an excellent performance in the Cougars' season-ending loss against Alabama, where he totalled 15 points, 7 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, and just one turnover against the Crimson Tide. His outside shot seemed to finally be coming around in the late stages of the season,. and he gave NBA teams the kind of tantalizing taste of potential that leads to a top 10 pick.
Is Demin a sure thing? Hardly. This season showed that he still has growing and learning to do, and there are plenty of ways in which he could turn out to be a bust. If his shooting doesn't come around in the NBA, we could be talking about a Ben Simmons-kind of flop, the physically gifted unicorn with point guard handles and ridiculous size who can't put it all together.
But if it works, and it very well could work, Demin has the kind of upside that teams dream of finding on the lower end of the lottery. He could turn into a slick passing, playmaking guard with scoring chops to keep defenses off balance, with the blend of size and quickness that will keep opposing coaches up at night.
He's going to need time, and patience, and the right environment to learn. But given the upside here, the right team could get themselves the biggest steal of draft night if they play their cards right.