Duke basketball wing Kon Knueppel Scott Ash / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

Four Duke Basketball Rookies Forecasted as 2025 First-Rounders

Originally posted on Duke Blue Devils on SI
By Matt Giles | Last updated Aug 16, 2024 7:25 AM ET

The official 2024-25 Duke basketball roster lists Kon Knueppel as a 6-foot-7, 217-pound freshman, significantly bigger than he appeared on recruiting sites. And judging by Knueppel's exceedingly impressive shooting feats in summer workouts, the five-star guard/forward from Wisconsin has a chance to match or even outdo the 3-point prowess of 2023-24 Blue Devil one-and-done Jared McCain.

So, perhaps it shouldn't come as a surprise that Kon Knueppel is now popping up in the first round of several early 2025 mock drafts.

Kon Knueppel doesn't profile aesthetically like the top scorer in EYBL, but he was, and combing back through that film, it's easy to see why.

Kon's footwork is impeccable, as is his shot, and his innate ability to find space to rise and fire both on and off the ball is so cool. pic.twitter.com/tKtPu6Daf5
— Logan Adams (@LoganA_NBA) August 12, 2024

Sure, it seems most folks don't expect the 19-year-old pure scorer to land a starting role on Jon Scheyer's third Duke basketball squad. Moreover, the "one-and-done" tag was absent from most outlooks on Knueppel before he arrived on campus this summer.

Even so, the latest Bleacher Report mock draft, courtesy of well-established draft expert Jonathan Wasserman this week, has Knueppel coming off the board at No. 12 overall next summer.

Wasserman offered the following explanation for such a lofty projection:

"Any preconceived concerns about Kon Knueppel's athleticism should fade once he shows off his scoring instincts and shooting...His 22.5 points per game led the EYBL last year, and his physical build and shotmaking hint at translatability. Even if he comes off the bench after Duke added transfers Maliq Brown, Mason Gillis and Sion James, Knueppel's skill level, IQ and efficiency should pop similar to how Reed Sheppard did in a reserve role at Kentucky."

Of course, as is the case on most other mock drafts, Wasserman pegs Duke basketball freshman forward Cooper Flagg to hear his name No. 1 overall. Plus, his first-round-only forecast includes two more of the Blue Devils' six heralded rookies in five-star center Khaman Maluach at No. 18 and five-star guard/forward Isaiah Evans at No. 25 overall.

Flagg, Knueppel, Maluach, and Evans are the only Blue Devils in Wasserman's mock draft.