NEW YORK, NY — Basketball prospects from around the world witnessed their lives change right in front of their eyes last week in Brooklyn as the 2025 NBA Draft transpired.
The National Basketball Association held its annual draft at Barclays Center last week. The more glamorous first round took place on Wednesday, while the second and final round took place the following day.
While the draft class of 2025 had many quality players, as per custom, Duke freshman Cooper Flagg was the only player considered to be an impact player who could change the fortunes of a franchise.
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It was a foregone conclusion that the Dallas Mavericks would select Cooper Flagg since they were awarded the first pick in this year’s draft at the mid-May NBA Lottery held in Chicago. It took an hour for NBA officials to escort him to the press conference room from the time NBA commissioner Adam Silver called his name. “The suspense was killing us!” I told him dryly as soon as he sat down in front of the microphone. Tired of the hero worship and pre-draft hoopla, Flagg let out a hearty laugh.
Rutgers power forward Airious “Ace” Bailey, who was selected by the Utah Jazz, threw out the ceremonial first pitch at Citi Field Tuesday night before the Braves-Mets game. Unlike many celebrities, including athletes from other sports, Bailey showed good form. I asked Ace if he ever thought about being an ace pitcher. “I love baseball. I was a pitcher and a shortstop in high school. I am angry at myself because the pitch I threw was a ball and I really wanted to throw a strike.”
Given the injuries to the Mets starting pitching staff, Mets president of baseball operations, David Stearns, should consider asking the Jazz if the Mets could borrow Bailey until NBA training camps open.
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There have not been too many Jewish players in the NBA over the last forty years. The Brooklyn Nets selected two towards the end of the first round, Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf. I asked Wolf, who is a junior at the University of Michigan, if he had spoken with one of the best Jewish players in NBA history, Forest Hills High School alumnus Ernie Grunfeld, who was also a member of the 1976 gold medal-winning US Olympic Men’s Basketball Team and served as president of the Knicks. Wolf told me he hopes to meet him.
Small forward Cedric Coward played for Washington State and will be playing for the Memphis Grizzlies this fall, grew up in Fresno, California. That was also the hometown of the greatest player in Mets history, Tom Seaver. Coward surprisingly never heard of him. I guess it’s a generational thing.
Guard VJ Edgecombe, who was taken with the third pick in the draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, grew up in Bimini. I asked him if he ever met Yankees infielder, and fellow Bahamian, Jazz Chisholm. “No, but I’d love to!” I have a feeling that it will be arranged.
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Edgecombe attended basketball secondary school powerhouse Long Island Lutheran located in Glen Head. I asked VJ if he ever went to any of the beaches on Long Island or Queens. “The Bahamas have the best beaches, so I have never had the desire to go to the ones on Long Island,” he replied. He did take note when I spoke highly of the Queens Riviera, better known as the Rockaways.
More from the 2025 NBA Draft in Brooklyn
Guard Jeremiah Fears was rumored to be drafted by the Nets but wound up being taken by the New Orleans Pelicans. I asked him if he was aware of the 1971 Three Dog Night smash hit, “Joy to the World,” whose opening lyric was “Jeremiah was a bullfrog!” He smiled and said, “My grandmother used to sing that to me all the time!”
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Kon Knueppel is the latest of a “one and done” Duke University first-year student. The Blue Devils sharpshooter was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets who had the fourth pick. Duke has long had a reputation for high academic standards. I asked Knueppel if he would try to take distance learning/correspondence classes at Duke since Charlotte is only a two-hour drive from Durham where the school is located. “I had not thought of that until now,” he replied. He did not seem happy with my suggestion, although I think his parents would very much like that.
St. John’s Red Storm guard RJ Luis’s horrendous NCAA Tournament game against the Arkansas Razorbacks which ended their season cost him dearly. Luis was not selected in either of the two rounds of the NBA Draft. The good news for him is the Utah Jazz signed him as a free agent to a two-way contract. The odds are he will be spending a good chunk of time in the NBA’s minors, otherwise known as the G-League.
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A promotion to the NBA is the exception, rather than the rule, in the G-League as recent Red Storm alum Joel Soriano will attest.
2025 NHL Draft in Los Angeles
The National Hockey League Draft took place in Los Angeles last Friday. This was the first time they had the top pick since they selected John Tavares in 2008. As expected, they chose defenseman Matthew Schaefer.
The Isles’ decision to go with Schaefer meant they passed on Hauppage native James Hagens. The Boston Bruins selected Hagens with the seventh pick in the draft. The Bruins must have an affinity for Long Island.
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Hagens will be joining Charlie McAvoy who grew up in Long Beach. McAvoy’s father-in-law is the new Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan.
Former Mets star José Reyes makes a stop by Citi Field
José Reyes was in the Citi Field press conference room on Tuesday to promote the No. 5 uniform retirement ceremony of his longtime teammate, David Wright, on July 19, as well as the Mets Alumni Game on September 13.
The Mets Alumni Game will feature a team who played at Shea Stadium and one who called Citi Field home. Jose Reyes played in both ballparks, and he will be playing for Team Shea. I asked him if that was his decision or if it was made for him. “Citi Field is great, but I really loved playing at Shea. There was an energy there which I cannot describe,” he replied.
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Reyes has also been a panelist on SNY’s 6 pm weeknight show, “Baseball Night in New York.” Reyes said he is not interested in a full-time media career, but he made sure the media knew he would be substituting for Todd Zeile on the SNY pre and postgame shows for the Mets-Pirates series which was played last weekend in Pittsburgh. He provided solid analysis and got to revive his “Professor Reyes” bit as he answered taped questions from Mets fans.
SiriusXM launches 24/7 channel dedicated to Wrestling
SiriusXM has launched a 24/7 channel dedicated to the world of professional wrestling. Pro Wrestling Nation airs on Channel 156. It will be interesting to see how much behind-the-scenes tea current and retired wrestlers will spill on the air.
“Vibe, Check” on ESPN Plus and Disney Plus
A new sports TV talk show, “Vibe, Check” debuts this week on both the ESPN Plus and Disney Plus streamers. It follows the template created by the CBS Sports Network’s “We Need to Talk” in that it features five female panelists.
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Among the familiar names are Hannah Storm, Elle Duncan, and Monica McNutt.
Documentary out on Hulu: “Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything”
The Hulu streaming service is showing a documentary titled “Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything.” The two-hour retrospective of her career shows the sexism she faced from the time she broke in at NBC in the early 1960s to becoming the first female co-anchor of national network news broadcast on ABC in 1976. Unfortunately, her on-air partner, Harry Reasoner, was not thrilled with the prospect of sharing a desk with her and made that clear both on and off the air. Of course, there are snippets of her celebrity interviews which preceded Academy Awards telecasts, and her time helming “The View.”
The producers of “Tell Me Everything” do not shy away from Walters’ troubled personal life and how she only cared about getting the top boldfaced name for an interview.
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She was especially worried about being replaced by former beauty pageant winner Diane Sawyer by ABC executives.
Remembering and Paying Tribute to Bobby Sherman
I was saddened to learn of the passing of Bobby Sherman who was one of the most famous teen idols in entertainment history. He succumbed to cancer at the age of eighty-one last Monday. He was a fixture on the pop charts from 1969 through 1971 with songs such as “Little Woman,” “La La La (If I Had You),” Seattle,” and “Julie, Do You Love Me?”
I always thought his two best records were “Easy Come, Easy Go,” in which he dispensed wise advice to guys about how to get over a relationship in which they were dumped by an uncaring lady, and “Cried Like a Baby,” which detailed the price to be paid for fame and fortune in the entertainment world.
While he kept his foot in showbiz by being on the summer oldies circuit, Sherman devoted himself to public service by being a paramedic for the Los Angeles Police Department. I remember chatting with him about the importance of learning CPR with him outside of the Westbury Music Fair years ago.
Bobby Sherman led a life well-lived.
You can read more of Lloyd Carroll’s columns posted weekly on The Queens Chronicle.
