2025 Draft Steals: Kings Raynaud, Hornets Kalkbrenner, Pelicans Queen

The 2025 draft is already paying dividends well past the lottery. Several players picked outside the top 10 are outperforming expectations: Maxime Raynaud (No. 42) has seized minutes in Sacramento, a 7 1 center shooting 54.4 percent and finishing around the rim after Domantas Sabonis went down. Will Richard (No. 56) supplies scoring, threes and steals for Golden State. Ryan Kalkbrenner (No. 34) anchors the paint with rookie leading block numbers and a 78.7 percent clip. Cedric Coward (No. 11) steadies Memphis with 13.9 points and 6.5 boards. Derik Queen (No. 13) mixes scoring, rebounding and playmaking as a modern, positionless big. Merlin sees a pattern: opportunity plus fit can rewrite draft grades faster than a scouting report. Teams that found these players will profit now and at the deadline. If finishing and defense hold, a few of these names become foundational pieces rather than late surprises.