The Best Watches at the 2025 NBA Draft, From Cooper Flagg’s Blinged-Out Hublot to VJ Edgecombe’s Classic Rolex

The next generation of NBA stars was drafted last night in Brooklyn. And if we know anything about the best hoopers on the planet, it’s that they don’t like to go anywhere without some serious heat on their wrists. Cooper Flagg, the surest All-NBA player of the bunch and newest member of the Dallas Mavericks, took this legacy seriously and spent some time with Hublot to find a timepiece he’d happily crook his arm for all night. He selected a watch with 210 diamonds, which science believes is the perfect amount of bling for the NBA draft.

However, while Hublot caught the big prize, Rolex dominated the rest of the night. As a vintage snob, I couldn’t help but appreciate third-overall-pick VJ Edgecombe’s Datejust, a modern take on the famed 1601 that established the look of the model. Atlanta Hawks draftee Asa Newell’s Daytona will soon be a neo-vintage classic itself. Young Jeremiah Fears, now of the New Orleans Pelicans, gets extra props: The electric guard went for a sub-$1,000 Tissot Powermatic, an awesome, vintage-inspired watch in yellow gold PVD. Because while we love our Rolexes around here, some variety is always welcome.

Here are our favorite pieces from last night’s first round of the NBA draft.

Cooper Flagg’s Hublot Big Bang Integrated Time Only Jewelry

This year, Hublot is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Big Bang, the unmistakable watch that lifted the brand’s fortunes upon its release in 2005. Flagg clearly couldn’t resist Hublot’s icon. While the watch is covered in diamonds, it could actually be considered one of the tamer models from Hublot, which is known for constructing the watch out of exotic materials and loud colors. Flagg’s Hublot is made out of titanium, comes in a slightly more wearable 40 mm, and fills nearly every bit of open space with diamonds.

VJ Edgecombe’s Rolex Datejust

It’s tough to argue the merits of a trusty Rolex Datejust—especially one with a black dial and a fluted bezel in the mode of vintage ref. 1601s from the midcentury. It looks like Edgecombe, selected third overall by the Philadelphia 76ers, chose a modern ref. 126234 that, like its vintage ancestors, marries a 36-mm stainless steel case with a white-gold bezel, an automatic movement, and—in this case—an Oyster bracelet. (It’s also available on a Jubilee.)

Kon Knueppel’s Rolex Yacht-Master 40

Kon Knueppel, fourth overall pick by the Charlotte Hornets, similarly sprang for a Rolex. The former Blue Devil went with the sporty Yacht-Master 40 ref. 126622, which boasts a 40-mm Oystersteel case with a platinum bezel and ceramic timing insert; a bright blue dial with Chromalight display; and an Oyster bracelet with an Oysterlock folding clasp. Unlike on a Submariner, the bezel—which is designed for yacht timing—is bidirectional.

Jeremiah Fears’s Tissot Powermatic 80 “Damian Lillard”

Newly minted New Orleans Pelicans point guard Jeremiah Fears must’ve missed the Rolex email and opted instead for a cool Tissot Powermatic 80 “Damian Lillard” Special Edition. A resurrection of a vintage Tissot model, the Powermatic 80 pairs a cool ’70s-inspired, yellow-gold PVD case with an integrated bracelet with an automatic Swiss movement and a caseback tribute to fellow undersized point guard Damian Lillard.

Walter Clayton Jr.’s Rolex Day-Date

Heading to the Utah Jazz, Walter Clayton Jr. donned perhaps the sparkliest watch of the evening, a Rolex Day-Date with a two-tone President bracelet, a champagne dial, and a diamond-set bezel. Launched in 1956, the Day-Date is the textbook definition of a “baller” watch, having been worn by US presidents, captains of industry, and too many point guards to name.

Asa Newell’s Rolex Cosmograph Daytona

Asa Newell’s tenure with the Atlanta Hawks is off to a good start. The 23rd overall pick wore an unbeatable Rolex Cosmograph Daytona on his wrist during draft night. Newell went with a classic configuration: steel case, a matching steel tachymeter bezel, a white dial, and a matching steel Oyster bracelet. A 12-hour counter in the 9 o’clock position indicates the presence of an in-house, automatic Rolex movement as opposed to an earlier Zenith caliber or a hand-wound Valjoux caliber.

Danny Wolf’s Rolex Deepsea

Drafted by the Nets, Danny Wolf rocked a Rolex Deepsea—a 44-mm behemoth in the brand’s Oystersteel with a 3,900-meter depth rating. In case sinking threes in Brooklyn doesn’t work out, Wolf can always strap on a brass helmet and take that watch down to the bottom of the Challenger Deep. Looking like a Submariner on steroids, it’s an appropriate pick for someone who would make a 40-mm timepiece look like a toy.