Five Players Facing a Make-or-Break Season for the 2025 NBA Draft | The Prospect Overview

The eligibility clock is running out for Gonzaga's Nolan Hickman, Mississippi's Matthew Murrell, Miami's Matthew Cleveland, and Alabama bigs Grant Nelson and Clifford Omoruyi. It's make or break time.

It was my freshman year of high school. I’d had my first kiss the prior summer (sick brag), but I’d never had an actual girlfriend before.

There was a girl I liked. We talked quite a bit, and I thought that she was pretty into me, too. But I had no idea what I was doing. One of her friends asked me if I had a crush on anyone. If I’d had a brain, I would’ve said, “yes, I like your friend, and I want to date her.” But I didn’t. I was still caught up in the grade school mentality that being attracted to someone is embarrassing or whatever. So, I lied and said no, I didn’t. I kept talking to the girl that I liked, but we slowly drifted apart, and soon she moved on to someone else. I was a little bit heartbroken, but even then, I knew I had no one to blame but myself. I never made the move when I had the chance. I’d slowly let the Boyfriend Eligibility clock expire. It all worked out in the end. I’m married, we have a kid, it’s great. But the lesson I learned from my first heartbreak always stuck with me. I’d rather lose an opportunity as a result of being overly assertive instead of due to being too passive.

For NBA prospects, the stakes are significantly higher. Rather than fighting for the right to get dumped via AIM in six weeks, they’re fighting for roster spots and millions of dollars. Today, we are going to focus in on five players who are at the end of their draft eligibility clock. These five players have long been on the cusp of the NBA, but they need to make serious pushes to solidify their stock. I’ll break down how they can move the needle in their make-or-break season. If they don’t, they could find themselves on the outside looking in. That said, every year, it feels like one of these players blows past prior expectations. Ochai Agbaji, Marcus Sasser, and Terrence Shannon Jr. stand out as recent examples. For that reason, I thought it would be worth taking a look at a few of the more interesting names out there.