With every passing day, the NBA dream of NBL Next Star Karim Lopez gets closer.

The Mexican forward, who helped the New Zealand Breakers win the Hungry Jack’s NBL26 Ignite Cup, is currently working out with numerous NBA teams, following a strong Draft Combine in Chicago.

In the most recent mock Draft by Yahoo Sports’ Kevin O’Connor, the 19-year-old, who has reportedly been invited to the Draft's Green Room, is slated to be selected by the Oklahoma City Thunder with the 12th pick.

“Lopez checks a lot of boxes with his excellent physical tools, hard-nosed approach, well-rounded ability to defend multiple positions and handle the ball, and blossoming shot,” O’Connor said via Yahoo Sports.

“Lopez has all the requisite skills to enhance a star teammate as a key piece on a winning team.”

While O’Connor and numerous other draft experts are intrigued by Lopez’s skillset, the Next Star explained that there is still plenty of growth in his game.

“I had the opportunity to show it a little bit more this last year than the first one [with New Zealand],” Lopez said on the Kevin O’Connor Show.

“There’s always plenty of stuff I haven’t fully shown yet, having only shown a few flashes.

“As years continue to go by, I’m confident those flashes can be more consistent at the NBA level.

“I definitely don’t think you’ve seen [the best of me yet].”

Further to that, while watching the current NBA Playoffs, Lopez, who says the ‘NBA has always been the dream’, is confident he can contribute to a team’s success in the post-season.

“[A lot] of the game right now is about the speed, physicality and size and I believe I can bring all three of those to any team,” he said.

“In transition, it’s about making quick reads and [relying on] your IQ as a player, which I feel [are my strengths].

“Honestly, I feel like I could be plugged into any team in the Playoffs right now, play a role and help them win.”

In the lead-up to the NBA Draft, which will be held in Brooklyn on June 23 and 24, Lopez has drawn comparisons to a Hall of Famer, with ESPN’s Marc J. Spears last month saying that he has “Scottie Pippen kind of things to him".

This comes after Lopez averaged 11.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.2 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game across the Hungry Jack’s NBL26 season, while shooting 49 per cent from the field and committing just 1.5 turnovers per game.

The Next Stars program has seen six players drafted in the first round across the last six NBA drafts, including LaMelo Ball (2020), Josh Giddey (2021), Ousmane Dieng (2022) and Alex Sarr (2024), all being selected inside the lottery.