Thus far, the 2020s have seen only two UNC basketball players head to the NBA following their freshman campaigns: Cole Anthony, drafted No. 15 overall in 2020, and Day’Ron Sharpe, No. 29 in 2021. Now, NBA Draft On SI’s way-too-early 2025 mock draft foresees the Tar Heels adding two more to their one-and-done tally next summer in forward Drake Powell and guard Ian Jackson.
Powell appears at No. 21, five picks above Jackson, a fellow five-star McDonald’s All-American, at No. 26.
NBA Draft On SI isn’t alone in projecting two Tar Heels to come off the board a year from now. In CBS Sports’ 2025 mock draft last week, Adam Finkelstein and Travis Branham slotted UNC sophomore guard Elliot Cadeau at No. 17 and Jackson at No. 28.
But On SI’s placement of the 6-foot-6, 195-pound Powell as the highest-drafted 2024-25 Tar Heel is somewhat surprising. After all, many expect the Northwood High School (N.C.) treasure, a renowned lockdown defender at the prep level and likely to serve as all-around workhorse on both ends of the floor for Hubert Davis’ fourth UNC basketball squad, to spend more than one season in Chapel Hill.
And few outlets put Drake Powell in UNC’s projected starting lineup.
Of course, regardless of how many minutes Powell plays as a freshman, it wouldn’t come as a shock if NBA scouts enjoy the pro potential they’re bound to notice in the Tar Heels’ new chiseled athlete from Pittsboro.
The Tar Heels, featuring reigning ACC Player of the Year RJ Davis and a deep supporting cast, tip off their schedule on Nov. 4 when Elon comes to the Dean E. Smith Center.