Walter Clayton Jr.'s Draft Stock Rising Amid March Madness Dominance

Among the many headlines of the 2025 Men’s NCAA Tournament, perhaps the biggest story has been the dominance of Walter Clayton. Florida’s star guard has been the biggest catalyst behind the Gators run to the National Championship game against Houston.

After an incredible regular season in which he averaged 18.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game on an efficient 60.5 TS%. This efficiency is headlined by his proficient three-point shooting, converting 39.2% of his 7.8 attempts per game. These makes include all types of attempts, such as contested off-the-dribble looks and tough movement shots off the catch. The rest of Clayton’s scoring package doesn’t lag too far behind, though, for he still shot a solid 53.2% from two-point range, and nailed 87.1% of his free throw attempts this regular season. 

Still, the senior ball handler couldn’t do much in the regular season to convince scouts that his draft stock should be any higher than in the late first round. Despite his offensive potency, as a 22-year-old small guard, concerns about his upside and NBA translation have made his projection less optimistic than that of his younger, more physically imposing peer prospects.

However, after a series of meteoric March Madness performances, those concerns are being drowned out with sheer excellence, with some now arguing Clayton as a lottery-level, and even top-10 prospect in the 2025 NBA Draft Class. He’s coming off back-to-back 30-point games in the Elite 8 and Final 4, totaling 64 points on astounding efficiency across the two contests. He’s made 18 of his 32 field goal attempts, including 8-for-16 shooting from beyond the arc while also converting 20 of 21 free throw tries. Earlier in the Gators' run, in the Round of 32, he also dropped a crucial 23 points to knock off the back-to-back defending champion UConn Huskies.

With a big performance in Monday’s National Championship game, Clayton’s shot-making prowess and explosive burst may prove to be enough to convince NBA scouts that he has the tools to be the next star offensive creator at the small guard position. He'll have to overcome many obstacles 6-foot-2 guards face at the. next level, but the most talented players can do so and provide unique value through their speed and pull-up shooting.