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Hornets nail all three 2025 NBA Draft selections in latest ESPN mock

Originally posted on Charlotte Hornets on SI
By Matt Alquiza | Last updated May 19, 2025 11:51 AM ET

Mock draft season is in full swing, and fans of the Charlotte Hornets can be found sniffing around the internet looking for any intel on what their team is planning to do with the picks they possess in the 2025 NBA Draft.

Jeff Peterson is armed with three selections; number four overall, number 33 overall, and number 34 overall, to add young, cost-controlled talent to his roster. ESPN's NBA Draft gurus Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo dropped their latest two-round mock projections, and the Hornets would be thrilled to walk away with this haul come draft time.

Givony projects three high-upside prospects to land in Charlotte

With the fourth overall pick, Givony and Woo project Charlotte to select Baylor's VJ Edgecombe.

Finding a mock draft where the Hornets select anyone other than Edgecombe is becoming increasingly difficult in our post-lottery world, but every draft prognosticator is on the same page: the Baylor star is a perfect fit in Charlotte.

In the second round, ESPN's primary draft analysts see the Hornets drafting Alabama's Labaron Philon and Arkansas' Adou Thiero. The pair of prospects project as solid defenders with rightful questions about their jump shots, shrouding their overall draft profiles.

Both Philon (a combo guard) and Thiero (a hulking forward), are nasty, multi-positional defensive prospects. They both are above-average athletes with plus wingspans that make life hell for opposing ball handlers. The rub, as stated, is projecting both players' potential impact on offense.

However, Peterson and head coach Charles Lee are willing to gamble on traits and strong defensive projections (Josh Green, Tidjane Salaun, and Josh Okogie, for example) at the expense of elite offensive potential. Quibble with their process as you see fit, but taking a look at the NBA playoffs will give insight to the level of physicality and defensive intensity needed to compete in May/June, and both Philon and Theiero have the requisite tools to compete on that end.