Draft day should be more of an easy cruise than a rollercoaster for former Oklahoma point guard Jeremiah Fears.
With the 2025 NBA Draft right around the corner on Wednesday night, there's a small window where Fears is projected to go inside the top 10 based on every major mock draft just a day before.
Fears an almost guaranteed top-10 pick
ESPN's Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo on Monday updated their draft predictions after the blockbuster trade that sent Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets. In that latest mock draft, ESPN projected Fears to go fifth overall to the Utah Jazz. According to Givony, Fears impressed the Jazz during a recent workout, which prompted a jump. Less than a week ago, ESPN had predicted Fears to go two slots later to the New Orleans Pelicans at No. 7.
"With star power being a significant need for the Jazz, it makes sense to take the plunge on a talent such as Fears, who had an outstanding season at Oklahoma despite being one of the youngest players in college basketball at 18 years old," Givony wrote. "His combination of size, speed, pace, shotmaking and shot creation gives him significant long-term upside, as he can get anywhere on the floor to create for teammates while dishing on the move, finish skillfully in the lane or draw fouls."
Even if the Jazz take someone different, Givony reported that the Pelicans still have interest in Fears at No. 7, and so do the Brooklyn Nets at No. 8. So even if Fears falls past the fifth pick, his safety net should be there at No. 8. No other major recent mock draft has Fears going outside the top 10.
While No. 8 should be Fears' floor, his ceiling could be even higher than the Jazz at No. 4. According to Givony, there's even a possibility the Charlotte Hornets nab Fears a pick before at No. 4 despite already having a point guard in LaMelo Ball.
The top three picks before that, though, seem to be a lock, capping Fears' ceiling at No. 4.
Fears played just one season at OU before emerging as a projected lottery pick, but even as an underaged freshman after reclassifying from the 2025 class, Fears still led the Sooners with 17.1 points a game during their run to the NCAA Tournament.
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