Next Star gets closer to NBA dream

Friday, April 18, 2025

The Spanish forward is aiming to get his name called in the upcoming Draft.

ESPN’s Jonathan Givony has revealed that NBL Next Star Izan Almansa has declared for the 2025 NBA Draft.

The Perth Wildcat finished the season averaging 7.6 points per game and 4.3 rebounds; he also showed promising development on his outside shooting as he converted 33.3% of his three-pointers, up from 20% last season.

He produced 10.5 points and 7.1 rebounds in over 17 minutes a game and has also had great success representing Spain, including winning gold at the U18 European Championships, silver at the 2022 U17 World Cup and then gold at the 2023 U19 World Cup.

Izan Almansa is currently projected to be a late second-round pick in the upcoming Draft, but he is determined to show his progress in the pre-Draft process and win NBA scouts over.

Nine Next Stars have been drafted directly from the NBL to the NBA - LaMelo Ball (pick 3, 2020), RJ Hampton (pick 24, 2020), Josh Giddey (pick 6, 2021), Ousmane Dieng (pick 11, 2022), Rayan Rupert (pick 43, 2023), Alex Sarr (pick 2, 2024), AJ Johnson (pick 23, 2024), Bobi Klintman (pick 37, 2024) and Ariel Hukporti (pick 58, 2024). Impressively, the program has produced six first round picks across the past five NBA Drafts.