Magic 8 Ballers: Time for a Re(Newell)
Ever had a song or movie scene stuck in your head? Well, that's how Asa Newell is for Rowan Kent. Find out what's made him an unforgettable 2025 NBA Draft prospect who deserves his lottery attention!
Some players just make you want to play the tape again. Sure, as a devoted NBA draft scout, I’m inclined to find the beauty in the game of every player. Like most other scouts, though, I’m human: I have some aesthetic preferences that lead me to want to watch certain player archetypes more than others.
I’m a sucker for guards who glide through the air, passers with a flair for the dramatic, and smart players who make defensive rotations before the offense even tries their action. Maybe I’m biased against more plodding and less flashy players, but that’s an L I’m willing to hold. I recognize that my cognitive biases exist, which helps me push through some of my scouting doldrums.
This year, however, there’s been little I haven’t loved watching from draft prospects. The cream of the lottery crop has been a blast to marvel at and dissect in equal standing. The rest of the lottery is a tossup of talented players who have had as much invigorating tape to consume as insightful clips of where they could grow.
So far, in my scouting for the 2025 NBA Draft, I’ve found myself coming back to a few players in particular. It’s mostly to complete my evaluations, sure, but it’s also out of a genuine enjoyment for their games. It’s not hard for me to picture all of these players having a profound impact at the NBA level, and that’s especially true for the player I’m shaking the Magic 8 Ball for this week in Asa Newell.
Quick Shakes of the 8 Ball
Like other players who are mainstays on NBA draft lottery boards, Asa Newell has been a recruiting fixture, but he hasn’t done so with the traditionally dominant profile. His talent, size, and upside were obvious to evaluators, but Newell has never truly featured as a centerpiece for most of the teams he’s been on. However, Newell traded personal glory for wins as he was consistently part of great teams that succeeded at every level.
Newell started at Choctawhatchee High School in Fort Walton, Florida, where he played alongside his older brother Jaden for his first two years of high school hoops. Newell didn’t play much as a freshman but saw his role increase as a sophomore. The brothers reached the Florida Class 5A state tournament in both years, but as Newell’s potential rose, he decided to find a greener pasture.
It takes a special sort of player to get recruited to Montverde Academy, start for the team, and excel there. Kevin Boyle has led the team to six of the past ten high school national championships, and the list of Montverde alumni in the NBA deserves a full article. That’s what makes it all the more impressive that Newell put together a memorable and impactful career for the Eagles during one of their best seasons in recent memory.
Newell’s basketball appeal is easy: he’s a monstrous 6’11” with long arms and a solid frame that could put on more weight without losing his explosiveness. That explosiveness shows both vertically, where he soars to swallow up shots or throw down dunks, and horizontally, as Newell glides between defenders and in front of attackers of his basket. It’s rare to have this sort of all-around phenomenal athleticism for a big man, but Newell backs it up with quick decision-making and a generally keen sense of timing on both ends of the floor.
All of these features helped Newell go from a bit role with the Eagles as a junior to a starting role as a senior. Newell started alongside Cooper Flagg and Derik Queen, two other potential 2025 NBA Draft lottery picks, and formed one of the least fair frontcourts imaginable for any unfortunate enough to stand in their way. Newell was never the focus, but he was always in the right place to make the right play on offense and defense to help Montverde to their undefeated season.
Newell’s lack of scoring production, often an indicator of future stardom, didn’t keep him from missing out on international competitions. He played in both the U17 and U19 FIBA World Cups for the United States, playing similarly small but crucial roles for the teams in their frontcourts. Despite his lesser statistical production, Newell’s high school accolades led to him being the second-highest-ranked recruit to choose Georgia for his abbreviated stop in college.
It may seem odd to spend a good amount of time remarking on Newell’s faults over his strengths, but that’s simply a feature of his past roles. Newell hasn’t had many chances to get the ball and show out like a star, even though he’s had a star-like impact on the floor.
This year at Georgia, however, Newell’s talent has been too loud to ignore, even as he’s played the same way as before. Instead of changing his game, Newell has played the same killer brand of two-way basketball that’s made him successful at each venture. The difference, then, is that he’s doing so without the weight of other star players invading his airspace and is dominating in one of his first chances to be the unquestioned best player on a team.
Occult Offense
I excitingly have no other way to put this: Asa Newell is dominating in a different role than he’s played in a while. Sure, he’s had his stellar bursts and moments for Montverde and the United States in the past few years, but he hasn’t had the type of leash nor window to show his stuff like he has at Georgia. That’s a credit to Mike White, as this is a talented Bulldogs team, but with a prospect as good as Newell, an opportunity has perfectly married untapped upside.
Of players who’ve played at least 180 minutes this for Georgia, Newell ranks first in usage percentage at 23.6% percent. That’s in line with Dakota Leffew and Silas Demary Jr.’s usages, each starting in the backcourt for the team, but Newell’s gone from a role player to a featured option in the blink of an eye. In that blink, he’s compounded on what he does well by sharpening his strengths and showing just enough of his weaknesses for them to seem not so weak at all.
Where Asa Newell is crushing hearts and dreams for opponents on the offensive end is by the basket. A whopping 166 of Newell’s 211 shot attempts have been two-pointers this year, with one coming on a jumper and just nine on runners. Between hook shots and rim attempts, Newell is surviving and thriving right at the basket due to the various ways that he’s simply better than most SEC defenders that he faces.
No matter how Newell gets his rim attempts, he does it at an elite clip. Per Synergy, Newell is shooting an elite 73.5% at the basket, which, admittedly, is buttressed by his penchant for dunking the basketball. He’s got 42 dunks on the season and has shown no sign of stopping any time soon.
As a cutter, Newell ranks as “Very Good” per Synergy due to his 66.7% shooting and lithe, aggressive darting to the rim. It’s rare to see a big man move with such suddenness, but Newell makes it look routine. He’s also patient, rarely moves out of turn, and springs open quickly for an easy finish.
Newell’s a demon on the offensive glass, with a gargantuan 15.7% offensive rebounding percentage. For a Georgia team that’s only shooting 32.5% from three as a unit, having a lunch pail player who can heartily collect misses and keep their offense humming is crucial. So much of his success comes from his elite second jump, which is quicker and higher than anyone else in the class.
Newell is patiently putting down his putback attempts at a robust 70.2% clip. The value of putbacks isn’t always noted for offenses, but Newell having a steady way to score at the rim without him creating it in the traditional sense is a feather in his cap.
It may not shock you, but Newell is a frightening freight train that few can stop on a fast break. Per Synergy, he’s shooting 80.0% on his transition plays, and it’s clear the ease and power he scores on that end. It’s not the most impressive statistic, as most good NBA athletes are also transition beasts, but that reflects that Newell will be a quality athlete at the next level.
With a baseline of cutting, scoring on offensive rebounds, and getting easy looks in transition, the bulk of Newell’s production is both repeatable and limited. He’s leading the Bulldogs in scoring but almost entirely off the ball. That’s an odd juxtaposition, given most leading scorers on teams have a more significant hand in initiating possessions, but it’s worked for Georgia and Newell. He’s shown how strong of an off-ball weapon he can be, even if it would show a higher ceiling were he to start doing more with the ball in his hands.
Understandably, Newell’s two areas of finishing are play types where he has more autonomy: rolling as the screener and driving from the perimeter. Being a potent screening finisher is necessary in today’s NBA, given its reliability and the attention often placed on star ball handlers. Driving from the perimeter is more of an extra feature for Newell’s development, but he’s excitingly shown that he could one day scratch that surface.
Whether as a function of Montverde’s offensive wrinkles or a dearth of data, Asa Newell doesn’t have much historical evidence that rolling to the rim is his strong suit. He’s shown the ability to do so at lower levels than Georgia, but right now, per Synergy, he’s shooting just 8/20, or 40.0%, on two-pointers as the roll man for the Bulldogs.
When you watch the film, there’s a clear pattern for what’s happening with Newell: he’s getting stuck. Newell often catches the ball around the foul line or just below, which leaves him in the in-between space of the paint. Newell’s touch is fine but not great, which leaves him either settling for awkward push floaters or driving aimlessly into some of his rare turnovers. There are moments of greatness where he rolls hard and gets himself to the rim, but the issues appear to be more about getting all the way there in the first place.
Sharpening his screening and scoring is key for a player like Newell, who looks like a primarily off-ball weapon. He’s shown an aptitude at lower levels, but his opponents will only get stronger and faster. That makes his improvement paramount to his ultimate NBA success, even though his floor as a finisher is high already.
However, Newell has shown a few flashes of another element to his game this season, which hints at the potential of a higher ceiling: driving. Part of Newell’s struggles as a screener comes from his growth trying to drive from the perimeter. Few players can keep up with a full-speed Newell, given his long stride length, and although it isn’t a staple of his game yet, he’s shown the ability to pump fake and put the ball on the floor just enough for me to be quite intrigued.
Newell needs to improve his pick-and-roll play by adding an improved finishing package; if he added further driving (and shooting) capabilities that opponents must respect, that would take his offensive role to another level. Right now, Newell is a great complementary offensive player. By adding more threatening options to what he does when he rolls or pops, Newell has the chance to deserve serious consideration on more on-ball attempts.
So, how is his pick-and-popping? Like the rest of his shooting, it’s a work in progress with some signs of improvement. As a player who primarily does his damage on the inside of the arc, Newell hasn’t been asked to space the floor as often as stretch forwards. That hasn’t meant, however, that he didn’t grow in his role at Montverde to start striping shots from distance to make some better spacing for their gigantic lineup.
When you break it down, Asa Newell has an unorthodox shooting motion. He lurches the ball quickly over his head, flings it with a lower arc, and often shoots from his toes. That leads to some balance issues, alongside some uglier misses due to the abruptness of the motion, but I don’t think that Newell’s form needs a complete renovation. Some footwork tweaks would do him a lot of good with repeatability and would help his upper body motions.
As of today, Newell is much more of a theoretical shooter than an actual one. He’s 12-of-45, or 26.7%, from three this year, taking a modest 2.3 threes a game, all of which are eerily similar to his 41.5% clip on 17-of-41 long bombs from last year at Montverde. Such a small sample size for both indicates that there’s no way to determine how potent of a shooter Newell is, especially when the tape speaks to his inconsistencies.
Newell’s threes have come entirely from two types of shots: pick-and-pop and spot-ups. Like the rest of his game, there’s no self-creation with the ball in his hands, but at least he has consistency in his offensive game plan. Neither area has been very fruitful for him this season, but it’s crucial to watch him work out the kinks of his jumpers for the potential bounty of a future Newell who can shoot.
There’s still a space for NBA players who do their damage primarily inside each three-point arc, but those players are often a bit bigger and stronger than Asa Newell. That doesn’t mean he can’t be an NBA starter, much less a star, if he doesn’t shoot; however, the path to that future is much narrower. Instead, Newell’s insistence on shooting shows his devotion to his craft and at least sparks some hope of becoming a league-average shooter. If that happens, Newell’s floor dramatically rises to an almost impossible level to keep him off the floor.
It’s less important for his role as a complementary offensive piece, but Asa Newell’s ball movement is worth monitoring for his potential star future. Newell isn’t tasked with making many reads in the flow of Mike White’s offense, leading to low assist numbers and a minuscule turnover percentage. Given that a handful of his turnovers have come on offensive fouls on drives, it’s fairly impressive how judicious Newell has been when making decisions with the ball in his hands.
A lot of Newell’s passing reads come when he catches the ball very early in his roll toward the rim or when he’s posted up at the high post. He’s not orchestrating the actions himself, but Newell has shown the ability to whip passes to players on the wing, in the dunker spot by the rim, and cutting to the basket.
Like his shooting, passing isn’t necessary to Newell’s developmental track to be a successful NBA player. He’s already put a lot on tape to show how potent of an off-ball option he is for the Bulldogs, which gives him a clear role at the next level. We haven’t even touched on his defense either, which comes next, but that further solidifies the secure standing he should have with NBA scouts.
Security is great for a mid-round draft pick, not a lottery pick. For me, it’s the untapped potential that drives Newell into his deserved lottery status. Right now, he’s a good player; if he can round out his screening, deep shooting, or passing, much less a combination of the three, Newell becomes a different player. That player deserves serious lottery looks as soon as the upper crust of players has been selected.
Inside Scoring Package: You May Rely On It
Outside Scoring Package: Cannot Predict Now
Passing/Ball-Handling Package: Better Not Tell You Now
Defensive Divination
As an offensive player, Asa Newell is unfinished but good at a few skills that bring team value. As a defensive player, Asa Newell is keenly and supremely prepared to throw a wrench into whatever a team tries to run against him. Newell’s greatness on defense likely stems from the fact that he’s had to impact the game off the ball on the other end, but enough about the offense: let’s dive into what I love about Newell’s defense.
First, a few Georgia statistics: the Bulldogs have had one of their better starts to a season in recent memory, sitting at 14-5 with some solid wins stacked. They look to be in control of their destiny to make March Madness for the first time since the 2014-2015 season. The Bulldogs have dominated on defense at this juncture, ranking 15th in the nation in blocked shots per game with 5.4 swats and, per BartTorvik, slotting in at 20th in the country in adjusted defensive efficiency.
The team section is later, so I’ll keep this brief: Georgia would not be doing any of what it’s doing right now on defense without Asa Newell. With his long reach, great horizontal mobility, and spot-on vertical timing, Newell is everything the Bulldogs need him to be whenever they need it. He’s a multifaceted defender who can go from guarding the rim to contesting a shot in the same possession repeatedly.
While he’s not as dominant as on the offensive glass, Newell is a committed defensive rebounder. The same traits that help him finish and snag offensive boards help him to secure his defensive caroms. Newell is a fundamental and athletic rebounder, combining consistent box-outs with comically long reaches on the rare occasion he’s out of position for a board.
To fully appreciate Asa Newell on defense, I’ll start with stats. Per BartTorvik, Newell is one of ten freshmen in the country with at least a 4.0% block percentage and a 2.0% steals percentage. If you’ve read something of mine (or really by most No Ceilings members) before, you’ll have heard that each percentage is a reliable statistical indicator of how good a player will be at the next level with said skill.
That’s not where the statistical significance stops, however. When expanded to freshmen with at least a BPM of nine alongside those blocks and steals percentages, we’re left with just Newell and Cooper Flagg this year. When you expand it out to the entire database, it’s a pretty notable set of names:
This certainly isn’t a “magic bullet” query, given the eclectic spread of names, but it does speak highly about what Newell has done so far in his likely lone season of college basketball. He’s a better defender already than Michael Beasley or Cody Zeller, which puts him in the tier of players who have, at minimum, been quality starters for the prime of their careers. If his offense can take a step forward, Newell might even belong at the periphery of the other tier of players featured here, though that would be a long shot.
While some players can artificially boost their defensive statistics with gambles, that’s not how Newell gets his steals. Most of his come from athletic aberrations to the matrix, where it looks like he shouldn’t be able to break the usual rhythm of an offense or when he rotates down a step before the defense thought he could. A good amount of Newell’s steals lead to runouts for him, which helps him generate easy offense on flashy plays.
Just like his steals, Newell’s blocks are both loud and repeatable. He stays committed to walling off the paint on defense, as he’s just as satisfied with a missed attempt as he is to block it. When Newell utilizes his timing and verticality on a foolish opponent, the results are messy and beautiful. Newell’s a bully with his swats, sending them half a dozen feet away but keeping them in bounds for new Georgia possessions.
It’s noteworthy that Newell isn’t a traditional pivot yet has played as the team’s de facto center. At 6’11” and somewhere in the 220-pound range, Newell is pretty undersized to man the middle at even the SEC level, much less in the NBA. His smaller size hasn’t hurt the team’s defense yet, almost entirely on the strength of Newell’s disciplined defending to overcome his minor shortcomings.
When he’s dragged out of the paint by an action, Newell still succeeds on defense. His true forward size, combined with his spry feet, give him the capacity to defend on the perimeter; his discipline and effort are why it’s so effective. Newell can navigate screens, dart out to opposing shooters, and cut off drives before they happen, all while keeping a watchful eye on the basket.
He’s also a staunch defender on post moves and would-be drives at the basket. His skills here are adjacent to his shot-blocking, but it’s important to note that Newell is a strong isolation defender. He’s not a forward to be targeted on switches, nor is he a sieve at the rim, even when bigger players get a post touch. Newell instead employs the same patience and steadiness to his game that he shows in all facets and makes what’s easy hard for his adversaries.
There aren’t any major holes in Newell’s defensive game, as he can go from a weak-side shot blocker at Montverde to a defensive anchor for Georgia. He’s unafraid of perimeter one-on-one situations and has the physical profile to keep up with many actions. When constructing a prototypical modern NBA defender sans the unicorn height, Asa Newell has everything a coach could ask for in a player.
That adds a high floor and ceiling to Newell’s game at the next level. He likely won’t step in as this impactful defender as a rookie in the NBA, but it won’t take long for him to get there. His multipositional impact and his offensive floor make a startling case for Newell incredibly easy. You don’t see too many rookies who look like they can hack it on defense at the playoff level, but you also don’t see too many players who are as good on defense as Asa Newell.
Perimeter Defense: Outlook Good
Interior Defense: It is Certain
Team Tasseography
There have been as many freshmen matches made in heaven this year as mishandled partnerships. In other words, it’s like every year at the college level. There’s a Jalil Bethea to Miami or Karter Knox at Arkansas debacle for every Newell to Georgia or Cooper Flagg to Duke situation. Still, Newell’s match has been one deliberately geared toward his success.
It’s a testament to Mike White’s vision with his Georgia roster to load it up with experienced transfers and then center his team around Newell’s talent. Tyrin Lawrence took a step back from his featured wing spot at Vanderbilt for this Bulldogs team. Dakota Leffew and De’Shayne Montgomery were a great backcourt for Mount St. Mary’s last season, but they only won thirteen games. RJ Godfrey and Justin Abson were each key big men for their team and now are playing similar roles alongside a frontcourt star.
That’s to say nothing of Silas Demary Jr. and Blue Cain, two of White’s recruits who have stayed the course in college and seen their games develop. Somto Cyril, the massive late signee for Georgia, looks to be the next one in line for that development. When you look at the sum of the parts around Asa Newell at Georgia, with an experienced backcourt and versatile frontcourt, it makes sense that he’s done so well early.
The team flows through Newell on both ends, even when he’s off-ball on offense. He sets most of the initiating screens, gets to make decisions in the high post, and has seen a steadily increasing diet of post-up attempts for the Bulldogs. While those may not be the most ethical shots for the team, they represent how much of the situation is catered toward Newell.
That’s not bad, especially with how good Georgia has been this season, but it does add important context to Newell’s rise. It’s unlikely he’ll get a similar experience at the next level, as his lack of on-ball offense makes it a hard sell to make him a team’s centerpiece. Newell will likely go back to a role that is more similar to the one he had at Montverde in the NBA, where he’s supporting rather than leading.
Games like the one against Florida this weekend, where the Bulldogs were decimated by the far superior team, also add fuel to Newell’s future role fire. There was little he could do against an NBA-caliber interior defender in Alex Condon, and his deep shooting stroke abandoned him as well. Georgia as a team only shot 5-of-21 from three and lost the rebounding battle, each speaking to the limited nature of the roster around Newell and the dangers of centering a team around a primarily off-ball player.
That’s where Newell will likely spend most of his career, which isn’t a knock to him at all. He will improve his next team immediately, just like he’s done at every juncture. Instead, that fact highlights the sound coaching of Mike White to not only help his highest-ranked recruit grow his game but also shine enough to be a favorite to be taken highly in the NBA draft.
The Final Shake
No matter how often I watch Asa Newell play basketball, I always want to watch more. Few players are as fun to watch punch the rim on offense and guard the rim on defense, with so many fun wrinkles to his game on both ends. He’s the ultimate high-floor player, as there just aren’t many things that Newell can’t do on the court.
That’s an odd sell for a player who I have seventh on my personal draft board, but the description undersells Newell’s impact. He’ll step in from day one as a likely starter in the NBA and will only get better. If he stays in his role forever, he’ll solve half of a team’s frontcourt for at least a half-decade, bringing consistent, easy offense and many different defensive solutions.
If he does keep developing, however, the possibility for a late-blooming star turn for Newell is in play. There have been past players like Pascal Siakam who have great physical profiles, toil away at their offense, and then emerge later to become offensive stars in the NBA. Siakam’s case is singular, but he’s the best-case scenario for Newell’s development if he can develop a better handle and shot.
That outcome is a single-digit percentage at most, but most of Newell’s outcomes are becoming a high-level starter on both ends in the NBA. That’s something that has lottery value for teams, even when there are multiple stars at play. He may not have the same star-sell as some other freshmen. Still, I’ve seen enough (and watched it over a few times) to feel confident in Newell being one of the more productive members of this draft class, regardless of the situation he enters at the next level.