Ace Bailey is scheduled to be drafted in the top five of the 2025 NBA Draft, and he revealed his thoughts on one possible landing spot.
Assuming the 2025 NBA Draft goes as expected, the Dallas Mavericks will first select the Cooper Flag, followed by the San Antonio Spurs for Dylan Harper.
Things then become unpredictable.
Ace Bailey, VJ Edgecom, Kon Knupel, Kaman Mallach and Tre Johnson all have been running since then.
Bailey came in third and flipped over to go to the Philadelphia 76ers via ESPN, but recently he gave the idea about sliding fourth overall, and no one in league history had said before. He said he wanted to be Charlotte Hornet.
Bailey, listed as 6-foot-10 throughout the season, turned out to be 6-foot-7 in the draft combine. He is one of the best scorers in his class, but it could hurt his stock.
He is a solid defender and has the tools to become a good scorer, but he really has a very raw prospect to improve before taking off. Winning teams like the Sixers may not want to invest in project players, but teams like Charlotte Hornets may be more suited to have room to build.
Between Brandon Miller, Lamelo Ball and Tijane Surrown, the Charlotte Hornets have a lot of young talent, and Bailey thinks he’s a good fit.
“B Miller, my dog, that’s a good thing,” Bailey said. “I mean, it feels like all three young guys, me and B-Miller, are doing the same thing, so it’s hard to protect them going to two of the same people in the same court.
The offensively oriented trio of Miller, Ball and Bailey could be one of the most exciting and best scoring attacks in the league, but there are very clear weaknesses on the defensive side of the ball.
Bailey has revealed that he considers himself a high-level NBA player compared to Paul George, Kevin Durant and Jason Tatum.
Before being drafted to second overall in 2023, Miller compared himself to George and said he considers him the best player of all time.
“Paul George is my goat because I’m a Paul George fan. I grew up watching him since I was a young man and I always studied his game,” he said two years ago. “Now I stole his move and put my own twist.”
Ball is the NBA’s top point guard when he’s healthy, but his health has always been a problem. Assuming Bailey can hit the ceiling faster than expected, the Hornets should be in a good location in a wide open Eastern Conference, but there is no guarantee that Bailey will fall on them.
The longtime franchise, the Hornets need to land the best players available, and names like Edgecomb and Johnson have also floated as Charlotte’s draft picks.