Top Defenders for the 2025 Class

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In today’s age of basketball, offense rules over everything nowadays but defense will never go extinct because it is how players can get their opportunity for minutes to show what they can do. Playing defense requires dedication and heart but can also be a skill for a player. This list is for the 2025 class and has players who combine those traits and skills and put it all together to make up the best of the best when it comes to defense. Here are my top five defenders for the 2025 class.

Yaw Ansong

7 State

1 Pos

6'11" | C | 2025 Union Catholic | Marston Elite

Ansong is an anchor down in the painted area. He’s an elite shot blocker that is not afraid to test any shot maker or driver looking to test him down low. Ansong reads passings lanes like a guard at the center position. He can even guard the perimeter and move his feet well like a guard. Standing at 6’11 Ansong is a force to be reckoned with at the defensive end and will only get better the more opportunities he gets.

Dwayne “DJay” Snead Jr

26 State

6 Pos

6'1" | PG | 2025 Pennington | NJ Shoreshots 16u HGSL

Snead uses his quickness and athleticism to pick off passes most guards couldn’t even come close to. He’s a maestro at stripping the ball away from ball handlers. Snead rarely gets beat off the dribble and if he does get beat he will send your shot into the bleachers. His defensive stats are impressive as he averaged over 2 steals a game while getting 50 of them in total this season. I fully expect those numbers to go up next year.

Malcolm Bragg

58 State

9 Pos

6'3" | SF | 2025 Newark Tech | Train’D 2 Go

Bragg plays with so much force and energy on the defensive side of the ball. He is an elite pickpocketer while also being very good at picking off passing lanes leading to more transition points. Bragg will dive and get after every loose ball he can get his hands on. He never lets a ball handler dribble past him making him a lockdown perimeter defender. Bragg had 68 steals this season.

Jalen Fleming

70 State

11 Pos

6'4" | SF | 2025 Timothy Christian | NJ Bulldogs

Fleming has a big 6’4″ frame already to put a body on ball handlers looking to take him off the dribble. He applies full-court pressure in almost every single possession while having unlimited energy in doing so. His ability to pick the ball away is what gets his team going in the fastbreak as he loves to run from baseline to baseline on the court. Fleming can even protect the paint like a big man giving his coach multiple ways how to use him. He recorded 47 steals and 21 blocks this season.

Brian Tassey

106 State

35 Pos

6'5" | SG | 2025 Freehold Boro

Tassey is a swiss army knife on defense. Being able to guard every position on the floor gives his coach the ultimate flexibility in how to use him in different defensive situations. Standing at a long 6’4″ frame Tassey uses that to his advantage to swarm ball handlers while also blocking shots at a high rate. He also won’t let you dribble past him or get a shot off in the paint making him a complete defender.