The Los Angeles Lakers' season may have ended on Monday night, but the offseason drama is just heating up. While all eyes are on LeBron James and Austin Reaves' contract decisions, the Lakers have another critical piece to figure out: their 25th overall pick in the upcoming NBA Draft.

In years past, picking late in the first round was a solid opportunity to snag a talented player who slipped through the cracks. But in today's college basketball landscape, that 25th spot has become a tricky position—thanks to the rise of NIL money.

Here's the reality: players on the fringe of the first round are increasingly choosing to stay in college rather than jump to the pros. Why? Because the math has changed. According to The Athletic, most high-major starters are now earning at least $1 million next season, with top-tier college stars pulling in several times that amount. Compare that to the NBA's rookie wage scale, where the 25th pick earns just under $2.5 million in their first year. Suddenly, the choice between a mid-first-round paycheck and starring for a championship contender in college isn't so clear-cut.

The Athletic recently highlighted three players who, in a previous era, would have declared for the draft but are now returning to the NCAA: Florida's Thomas Haugh, UConn's Braylon Mullins, and Duke's Patrick Ngongba. These are exactly the kind of prospects the Lakers would have targeted at No. 25.

The irony isn't lost on anyone—the 25th pick was used as the benchmark in that analysis, likely for numerical convenience rather than a direct Lakers connection. But it hits home for Los Angeles. Anyone not guaranteed to be picked by No. 25 risks falling into the second round, where the contract terms are even less appealing.

The Lakers are positioned just high enough to land a player they like, but the decision is no longer straightforward. Too many of the prospects L.A. might have wanted are now choosing the college spotlight over the NBA grind. For a team looking to reload on the fly, that 25th pick just got a whole lot more complicated.