NBA Rumors: Scouts Criticize Derik Queen's 'Consistency of Effort'; No. 5 in B/R Mock

Maryland center Derik Queen may have some skeptics to silence in the 2025 NCAA men's basketball tournament.

The freshman is the No. 8-ranked prospect competing in the Big Dance in the eyes of ESPN's Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo.

Woo called Queen "the most offensively gifted big in this draft class" but reported "there have been gripes from NBA scouts who have critiqued his consistency of effort, leaving room for doubt particularly on the defensive end, where he can be lethargic."

Queen has averaged 16.3 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.1 blocks through 33 games for the Terps. He was the Big Ten Rookie of the Year and voted by coaches onto the All-Big Ten first team.

Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman dropped his newest mock draft on the eve of the NCAA tournament and projected Queen to go fifth overall to the Brooklyn Nets. The 6'10" big drew a comparison to the Houston Rockets' Alperen Şengün.

"Despite losing to Michigan in the Big Ten tournament, Derik Queen put together one of his most compelling NBA pitches of the year with 31 points," Wasserman wrote. "Making a pair of threes and mid-range jumpers while shaking defenders off the dribble and handling in transition, Queen showcased an updated skill set that's changed scouts' minds about his NBA fit.

"Queen may need some specific pieces around him to mask some of his limitations, but lottery teams could simply see too polished of an offensive player to worry about fit for a rebuilding roster."

Barring an unforeseen twist, the top three picks in the 2025 draft look pretty settled. Duke's Cooper Flagg will go No. 1 overall and likely be followed by Rutgers' Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey.

Maybe Baylor wing VJ Edgecombe crashes the party, with Wasserman putting him at No. 3 in Tuesday's mock.

In the case of Queen, he appears to have a firm ceiling in the first round. The NCAA tourney may help to define where his floor is.