What they're saying about Walter Clayton Jr. with the NBA Draft approaching

After helping lead the Florida Gators to the NCAA championship in April, point guard Walter Clayton is preparing to embark on a professional career. The NBA Draft is June 25 and by most accounts Clayton, a consensus first-team All-American, has an excellent chance to be a first-round pick. Here’s the latest chatter about Clayton:

—St. John’s coach Rick Pitino, who once coached Clayton at Iona, via X, the app formerly known as Twitter: “Just think of what a big time winner Jalen Brunson is, now pencil in Walter Clayton Jr. There you go. Just Win baby!”

—Adam Finkelstein of CBSSports.com projects Clayton to go No. 13 overall the Atlanta Hawks: “This year’s Mr. March Madness played his way into lottery consideration, not because he led Florida to a national championship, but because he showed different elements of his game and a higher upside while doing it. He’s an extreme shot-maker and quality scorer, solid defender, and now has on-off ball versatility.”

— Curtis Rowser III of SLAM Magazine: “Anybody who’s even vaguely familiar with team sports knows the old adage: offense wins games; defense wins championships. And yes kids, that still rings true, even in the Stephen Curry era. But when it comes to college basketball, if you want any chance at cutting down the nets, you better have at least one killer in the backcourt. As it turns out, Florida had the best guard in the country this year: Walter Clayton Jr.”

—Former NBA player Theo Pinson on the “To The Baha” podcast: “This guy, I don’t care (about) his age. I don’t care what school he went to. I don’t give a damn about what stars he had… he is a top five pick.”

—Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Reports has Clayton going 24th overall to Oklahoma City: “Confidence in Walter Clayton Jr. peaked after his 34 points against Auburn. The fearlessness and clutch shotmaking have scouts starting to buy in and ultimately look past the size questions for a scoring guard.

Despite struggling in the first half in the national title game against Houston, who made him priority No. 1 on the scouting report, Clayton ultimately did an effective job switching into playmaker mode. And then he came on late—which has become a theme—delivering a pair of tough finishes and a movement three to help bring Florida back.Scouts acknowledge his stock is rising entering the pre-draft process.”

—College Football Network: “Walter Clayton Jr. Overtakes Cooper Flagg as Top NIL Earner. According to the X post from The NIL Store, Florida guard Walter Clayton Jr., who just won a national championship at the beginning of April, overtook projected first overall MBA Draft pick Cooper Flagg. Clayton’s NIL earnings are reportedly worth $626,000. The Florida Gators guard has deals with Chomp Out Hunger and the North Central Florida YMCA.”

Gator Boys all over the top earners of April

Thoughts on this list? pic.twitter.com/uy2ToILvod

— The NIL Store (@nil_store) May 7, 2025

—Jay Williams, ESPN, on the show Get Up: “I could make a case that he could be the second or third pick in the NBA Draft. The run this guy’s on, the shots he makes, combine Damian Lillard with Steph Curry, I’m not saying he’s going to reach the pinnacle of who those players are but his game to me seems like a marriage between the two.”

—NBA Draft Room scouting report: “Clayton Jr. is a high scoring combo guard who can get red-hot from downtown and can carry his team on the offensive end. He’s lacking ideal sized for a shooting guard but can also play on the ball and is developing as a play-maker/initiator.

He gives good effort on the defensive end but doesn’t project as a plus defender at the NBA level. He does rebound the ball well for a smaller guard. His main NBA skill is his ability to knockdown outside shots. He can be streaky but once he gets going it’s lights out. A knockdown FT shooter.”