The 2024-25 All-NBA Teams were announced last week by the league, and highlighting the list were three first-time recipients: Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams, Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham and Cleveland Cavaliers center Evan Mobley. Williams, a Third-Team All-NBA selection, is the first player from a star-studded 2022 draft class to earn one of the top individual honors in the Association.
Cunningham and Mobley, the former No. 1 and No. 3 overall picks from the 2021 NBA Draft, became the first players from their respective draft class to earn All-NBA. Last year, Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards earned All-NBA honors and distinction as the first players drafted in the 2020s to land on the prestigious teams.
The 2024-25 season marked Year 2 of the position-less All-NBA teams. It was also the second year of the league’s 65-game minimum requirement to be eligible for All-NBA honors. That meant players such as San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama and Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero were automatically disqualified from earning All-NBA honors due to the games played requirement by the league.
Wembanyama and Banchero were both on pace to potentially earn All-NBA honors before their respective seasons were cut short. Banchero missed 34 games due to a torn right oblique muscle, while Wembanyama missed the last two months of the season after he was diagnosed with a blood clot in his right shoulder.
Who will be the next player drafted in the 2020s to land on one of the All-NBA teams? Let’s dive in.
1. Victor Wembanyama, Spurs
Year drafted: 2023 | Prediction of first All-NBA Team: 2025-26 season
Wembanyama was on track to earn All-NBA, All-Defense and Defensive Player of the Year honors before missing the final two months of the 2024-25 season after he underwent surgery on the deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder in February.
Wembanyama was taking a major jump as an all-around player before his second season was cut short. Wembanyama averaged career highs in points (24.3), rebounds (11.0) and blocks (3.8) after a standout rookie campaign. Wembanyama is expected to make a full recovery ahead of the 2025-26 season. If he’s healthy and meets the 65 games played requirement, Wembanyama should be the favorite for Defensive Player of the Year and will be in strong contention to earn All-NBA honors as soon as next season. Team success and minor improvements in his all-around game — such as becoming a more efficient 3-point shooter — will do wonders for Wembanyama’s case.
2. Paolo Banchero, Magic
Year drafted: 2022 | Prediction of first All-NBA Team: 2025-26 season
During the first five games of Banchero’s third NBA season, he was averaging 29 points, 8.8 rebounds and 5.6 assists before an oblique injury sidelined him for nearly two-and-a-half months. That injury essentially ended his bid for All-NBA honors. The highlight of that impressive stretch was against the Pacers when the Magic star finished with 50 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists.
One area Banchero grew as a player during the 2024-25 campaign was finishing at the rim. Per Synergy, Banchero converted 58.1% of his attempts at the rim (212 of 365). That mark was nearly a 3% improvement from his second season in the league. The No. 1 overall pick from the 2022 NBA Draft should be the favorite to become the next player from his draft class to earn All-NBA honors. The start of his third season was a glimpse of how he can become a top-15 player in the league as soon as next season if he can improve his overall efficiency.
3. Alperen Sengun, Rockets
Year drafted: 2021 | Prediction of first All-NBA Team: 2025-26 season
The player who earned the most total points (58) without being selected All-NBA was Sengun. Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden (68 points) edged him out for the final spot on the All-NBA Third Team. Sengun was a logical pick for All-NBA this season because of his improvement as the hub of the Rockets’ offense, which helped Houston make a jump from the lottery in 2024 to the No. 2 seed in the West in 2025.
The Rockets have one of the more fascinating futures in the NBA. Houston has building blocks in Sengun and Amen Thompson (more on him later), solid veterans and multiple contributors under 25 years old. The biggest storyline to monitor for the Rockets is whether they run it back with a core that helped them go 52-30 or take a swing on trading for a star such as Kevin Durant or Giannis Antetokounmpo. If Houston sticks with its core, Sengun has a strong case to earn All-NBA next season. Even if the Rockets add a top-tier scorer like Durant, it should free up Sengun to be a better playmaker and score more efficiently.
Year drafted: 2020 | Prediction of first All-NBA Team: 2025-26 season
Only two players from the 2020 NBA Draft have earned All-NBA honors: Haliburton and Edwards. If anyone else from that class will accomplish the feat, it’s Maxey. Sure, you can maybe make the case for LaMelo Ball, but Maxey is a better scorer and in a better situation than the Hornets‘ star guard.
Maxey has solidified himself as a true second option on a championship contender and is one of the best-scoring guards in the league. With the 76ers back to full health next season, it would be surprising if Maxey didn’t take another leap as a scorer. Maxey shot 33.7% from the 3-point line (on 9.2 attempts per night) — his worst shooting percentage from beyond the arc since his rookie season. Simply put, last season was a disaster for Philadelphia, but better days should be on the horizon. Maxey wasn’t eligible for All-NBA because he only appeared in 52 games. Reaching the 65-game threshold, which he’s done only twice in his career, will be key.
5. Amen Thompson, Rockets
Year drafted: 2023 | Prediction of first All-NBA Team: 2026-27 season
The only player not projected to earn All-NBA next season from this list is Thompson. He may be a year or two away from being a serious All-NBA contender, but the former No. 4 pick from the 2023 NBA Draft is an elite athlete who made a significant leap in an expanded role. Thompson earned a spot on the NBA All-Defensive First Team after averaging 1.3 blocks and 1.4 steals per game.
Thompson is the perfect player to build around in Rockets coach Ime Udoka’s defensive-minded system. Thompson’s elite athleticism was his calling card coming out of the 2023 draft class, and those defensive tools and traits have been on full display during his first two seasons in the league. The main reason why Thompson is still at least a year away from earning All-NBA is the offense still needs work. He shot 27.5% from the 3-point line (1.3 attempts) after shooting 13.8% on less than one attempt per game (0.9) as a rookie.
Thompson can get to the rim at will, and 65% of his overall shot attempts came in that area, per Synergy. For more context, Thompson shot just 31.5% (62 of 197) on jumpers. If you buy into the defense, athleticism and offense improving, Thompson should be a multi-time All-NBA player by the end of the decade.
This news was originally published on this post .
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