Egor Demin dazzled audiences as a freshman, flashing his potential as an oversized player with point-guard skills that have become so coveted. Demin thrived early on in the season, but struggled somewhat to maintain his production deep into conference and tournament play. Can Demin parlay his flashes of greatness into high NBA impact?
Team: BYU
Height: 6’9
Weight: 199
Wingspan: 6’10
Age: 19.3 (March 3, 2006)
Egor Demin— Wing, BYU (19.3 years old)
NBA Comparison: Josh Giddey, Dalano Banton
Tall playmaking wunderkinds like Josh Giddey have found ways to impact winning without great scoring or athletic tools. These players have difficult paths to stardom, but shooting and strength development can help them maximize their passing goodness. Even a lanky handler like Dalano Banton carved a niche as a valuable bench spark plug.
Strengths
Brilliant floor processor with a sixth sense for manipulating pace and space as a passer
Throws long passes with both hands from a live dribble to punish defensive mistakes
Fluid with the ball when he finds a lane downhill, fast when he can drive in a straight line
Flashes of positive on and off-ball shooting despite inconsistent efficiency
Clogs up passing lanes with his size and length to force turnovers
Weaknesses
Limited burst and strength limit scoring impact, high-level defenses exploited his scoring
Struggles mightily to dribble and create advantages against pressure defenses without a screen
Hasn’t proven himself an efficient 3-point shooter yet
Struggles to stay in front of quicker players when defending the ball
Must add plenty of physical strength to hold up on the interior on defense
Offensive role: Pick-and-Roll Playmaker/Connecting Wing
Defensive role: Off-Ball Playmaker
2025 NBA Draft Projection: Round 1, Pick 20-30
At some point, finding value in the draft comes from betting on special traits. Demin’s passing feel is preternatural for his size and could help him far exceed draft expectations. He’ll have plenty of scoring and defensive obstacles to overcome, but a shrewd team could extract tons of value from Demin’s ability to set teammates up for easy shots at the rim and from three.
