4. Toronto Raptors - Ace Bailey, F, Rutgers
As the Toronto Raptors have gotten healthier, this is a team that has begun to play slightly better over the last few weeks. Nevertheless, this is a team that continues to struggle because of their youth and experience. No matter how much talent they may have on their roster, they're going to continue to struggle with consistency and that is likely going to lead this team to finishing with a top 7-ish pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. For now, they're on pace to earn the No. 4 overall spot. If they were to land in this position, there could be plenty of intriguing options on the table for the Raptors.
Looking at their roster, it's safe to say that the team is pretty locked up with the core of Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, and Immanuel Quickley. Aside from that, everything and anything is up in the air. Looking for some frontcourt talent could go a long way in helping the Raptors balance out their young core. And with the way the top of this draft has fallen in this specific mock, there's reason to believe that they would be getting a great player by taking Ace Bailey with this selection.
Why Ace Bailey makes sense for the Raptors
Bailey is so talented that there could be some draft scouts who believe he should be the No. 1 pick in this draft. If it wasn't for Cooper Flagg and his continued consistency so far this season, I do believe that would be getting more play in the media. It also doesn't help that he's playing his collegiate basketball for Rutgers. However, as the rest of the nation begins to get more informed on this year's highly-touted draft class, Bailey is going to get more and more intriguing as a potential franchise-changing talent.
At his size and what he can do with the basketball in his hands, there may not be a better fit (considering the draft spot and board) that the Raptors could make in this mock. Bailey would likely be a day-one starter for the team and would bring an element on the offensive end of the floor that the team doesn't currently have in the frontcourt. Bailey may need to work on his shot selection but he's the type of player that can get any shot off whenever he needs to. He's the type of offensive talent that NBA teams dream of drafting.