Sam Vecenie debates where Kon Knueppel stands on NBA Draft board

Cooper Flagg has long since been expected to headline the 2025 NBA Draft class. However, he’s not the only Duke star who will hear his name called during this summer’s annual event.

Fellow freshman Kon Knueppel as well as junior guard Tyrese Proctor, and freshman big man Khaman Maluach all declared for the draft this offseason as well. According to The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie, Knueppel in particular makes projects as an interesting prospect for teams at the next level. Still, he slotted him No. 5 overall to the Charlotte Hornets

“I think it’s kind of hard to overemphasize the level of touch here,” Vecenie said on his podcast, Game Theory. “90% from the line, 40% off the catch from three made, 50% of his mid range pull ups. Like, unbelievable shot mechanics. They’re what you would teach in terms of shot mechanics. They’re beautiful, like one motion, shot clean, release, great rotation on the ball, high follow through, great base, the balance is elite through the shot drill, shots off of movement had a 56 shooting percentage off the screens this season, smart at relocating and moving without the ball.

“I think he projects as a real, high volume three point shooter. But then don’t sleep on the on-ball skills. … I think that this sneaky thing here is he just plays with really good bend as much as anything. Like, he really plays lower to the ground, which allows him to be successful in those manners.”

Knueppel was one of the most important pieces to his team as a freshman for Duke, and played a prominent role in helping the Blue Devils reach the Final Four. He started in all 39 of the team’s games and in front of a national audience on a weekly basis, quickly became one of the best shooters in America.

The 6-foot-7 freshman finished his lone season in college shooting 40.6% from 3-point range, something that translates well with his size at the next level. Knueppel did it on heavy volume, too, making 84 shots on 207 attempts.

In addition to his strong shooting clip, Knueppel impressed with his ability to do just about everything else on the floor as well. He finished the 2024-25 season having averaged 14.4 points and 4.0 rebounds per game, but he also chipped in 2.7 assists and 1.0 steals per game.

However, Vecenie did express concern regarding Knueppel’s athleticism, noting his lack of explosiveness. Whether this will hold teams back from selecting him with their lottery pick remains to be seen.