Everything you do or say is heavily scrutinized when you are going through a pre-draft process. Teams have to pick your brain, learn about your personality, and figure out if you're going to be conducive to winning, or if you'll take away from the team's goal by focusing on your own.
Ace Bailey has been under the microscope despite only being in college for one season. He was a highly touted prospect, and it was interesting that he decided to commit to Rutgers, which isn't known as a basketball powerhouse. Bailey wasn't able to lead the Scarlet Knights to the NCAA Tournament and is turning his attention to his pro career.
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Bailey is still an exciting prospect with analysts believing that he has the most upside in the 2025 NBA Draft class, per Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Still, some red flags come with the Rutgers prospect. Will he be the early first-rounder he should be? Or, will these red flags and concerns cause him to fall down the draft board?
Scouts think that Bailey has more upside than presumed No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg. A scout told Pompey, "But Bailey is the one if he hits. If he hits, he’s better than Cooper Flagg. He’s more athletic. If they’re going one-on-one, I got Ace. I might be wrong, but I’m going with Ace." This shows how important it is for him to land with the right team, but his pre-draft process isn't doing him any favors.
Here is more on why Bailey could be concerning to teams.
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Ace Bailey red flags, explained
Immaturity
One of the concerns around Bailey has been his immaturity. Scouts have been quick to clarify that it isn't unexpected for his age; he just doesn't always carry himself as a professional. One scout said, "He’s not immature like a [butthead]. … He’s goofy. Dancing in line. You are doing drills, he’s dancing. ‘Oh, that’s my song.’ … He’s playful, which is age-appropriate.”
This isn't a bad thing, especially seeing as Bailey is still just 18 years old. Still, if a team is looking at using as high as the No. 2 pick on a player, they want assurances that the pick will be a home run across the board.
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Poor interviews
As part of the pre-draft process, players undergo interviews with teams. This allows the front office and coaches to meet with the prospects to ensure that they will mesh with the roster and align with the organization's goals. Sources told Pompey that Bailey "seemed unprepared to answer certain questions during team interviews."
This isn't the end-all, be-all factor when it comes to increasing your draft stock. Still, you don't want to give the teams a reason not to draft you, unless you are trying to purposefully tank your stock to try and land in a more advantageous spot.
Skipping workouts
Baked into all of this concern about the advice that Bailey is getting from his representation. The prospect is represented by Omar Cooper, whose son Sharife plays in a French basketball league. Cooper told Bailey to skip the private workouts with the 76ers, which was a head-scratching decision given that Philly likes Bailey and holds the No. 3 pick in the draft.
A week ahead of the draft, ESPN said that Bailey hadn't had any pre-draft workouts. Per ESPN, "Bailey's predraft workout strategy has perplexed some observers, as he has yet to conduct a single known workout to date, having declined invitations from several teams within his draft range." Sources also told ESPN that Bailey's camp believes he is a top-three player, thinking that interested teams will trade up to get him.
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This caused many to wonder, along with the intel they were hearing about the interviews going poorly, if the "refusal is a result of a guarantee from another squad." Some of the teams with early picks, such as the Hornets, who have point guard LaMelo Ball, but choose No. 4 overall, don't have a clear path to playing time for Bailey.
With it feeling like Bailey could be trying to tank his stock to land in a better situation, Pompey says that these actions could cost the Rutgers guard money. "If the Sixers don’t select Bailey, there’s some thought he could drop out of the top five."