A trade between the California Redwoods and Boston Cannons has shaken up the top of the 2025 College Draft since my last mock. The Cannons received defender Owen Grant while the Redwoods acquired the third overall pick. 

It was a trade that made sense for both teams, as Boston bolstered its defense with a high-upside player in Grant while California can look to add more firepower with another offensive piece at the top of the draft.

With the draft about a month out, here is an updated Round 1 mock draft:

No. 1: Philadelphia Waterdogs - CJ Kirst (Attack - Cornell)

Kirst is an easy selection as the No. 1 pick. He’s an elite dodger equipped with an awesome change of direction and bounciness to his game, but his ability to play a variety of roles in an offense makes him the consensus top prospect in the class. 

Sitting just 11 goals away from Payton Cormier’s NCAA record of 224, Kirst can create his own shot, but he’s also equally as good as an outside shooter and inside finisher. Usually, a player only is excellent at one of these things; Kirst is outstanding at all three.

He would be a great addition for any offense, but with the Waterdogs losing Zed Williams for the year with an injury and Kieran McArdle getting up there in age, Kirst is a terrific option alongside Michael Sowers to rejuvenate this Philadelphia offense.

Read his full player profile here.

Previous Pick: CJ Kirst (Attack - Cornell)

No. 2: California Redwoods - Andrew McAdorey (Midfield - Duke)

New Redwoods general manager Joe Spallina coached McAdorey in high school, so he knows how dynamic the Duke star could be as a pro.

McAdorey has played some attack in his career, but his real value is when he uses his elite speed to create plays in the middle of the field on both ends and especially off faceoff wings.

Pushing offense quickly off a faceoff win is so important in the PLL with the 32-second shot clock. We’ve seen the New York Atlas utilize Dox Aitken and Jake Stevens off the wing, and the Maryland Whipsnakes do the same with Ryan Conrad and Adam Poitras.

McAdorey is next in line as an offensive-minded midfielder who can create immediately off a faceoff wing, which he should get a lot of opportunities to do if TD Ierlan wins draws at the 60% clip he did in 2024.

Unless he gets tired, McAdorey should never leave the field.

Previous Pick: Andrew McAdorey (Midfield - Duke)

No. 3: California Redwoods - Chris Kavanagh (Attack - Notre Dame)

After acquiring this pick by dealing Grant to Boston, the Redwoods might look to take Kavanagh to add some offensive firepower.

Spallina has made clear that he wants to bolster the offensive talent on this roster, so even though he knows Grant is a very good defender, the trade frees up California to take another top offensive player in this draft.

Kavanagh certainly fits that bill. He is an electric dodger and shooter who could thrive in the frenetic nature of the PLL. Kavanagh is exceptional at making decisions on the fly and is one of the toughest one-on-one covers in all of college lacrosse.

Syracuse midfielder Sam English and Harvard attackman Sam King could also be options here, and don’t be surprised if you see a trade down in this spot if Spallina wants to accumulate some more draft capital.

Read Kavanagh’s full player profile here.

Previous Pick: N/A

No. 4: Boston Cannons - Coulter Mackesy (Attack - Princeton)

After acquiring Grant from California, the Cannons use this pick to fill another big need for them: the lefty attack spot. 

Boston never fully figured out that spot last season, testing out Pat Kavanagh there as well as midfielders Chris Aslanian and Matt Campbell toward the end of the season, without much success.

With Mackesy, they get a smooth operator and shooter who should fit in seamlessly on a line with Asher Nolting and Marcus Holman as a player who can play with or without the ball.

Previous Pick: Coulter Mackesy (Attack - Princeton)

No. 5: Carolina Chaos - Sam King (Attack - Harvard)

It’s no secret the Chaos need offensive help. Insert King, a dynamic attackman.

He's a stubborn, strong dodger and a capable feeder who could play at X or on the righty wing.

Like Kirst, King doesn’t need the ball in his stick at all times to be productive. He’s a terrific midrange shooter and extremely crafty off-ball, as well. 

Having been the top priority on opposing defenses’ scouting reports since he stepped foot on the field at Harvard, King would benefit greatly from playing alongside a guy like Josh Byrne who can draw attention and open up space for King to operate.

Previous Pick: Chris Kavanagh (Attack - Notre Dame)

No. 6: New York Atlas - Brendan Lavelle (Defense - UPenn)

I’ve been mocking Lavelle to the Atlas for some time, and that’s not stopping now.

While they don’t have a ton of glaring needs for their roster, the righty from UPenn would add great depth and flexibility to New York’s defense. He could start right away if someone like Brett Makar bumps to LSM, or he could be the fourth defender and jump in the rotation with no drop-off whatsoever.

Previous Pick: Brendan Lavelle (Defense - UPenn)

No. 7: Maryland Whipsnakes - Ben Ramsey (SSDM - Notre Dame)

It could be enticing for the Whipsnakes to scoop up a potential game-changing LSM like Virginia’s Ben Wayer or Saint Joseph’s Levi Verch. But it would be hard to see them pass on the opportunity to fill the biggest hole on their roster by selecting the top SSDM in the draft.

While Ramsey hasn’t had the greatest year by his standards, his body of work speaks for itself. A consensus first-team All-American in 2024, he's proven he can defend some of the best midfielders on the planet and has the athletic traits to match. Plus, like all good two-way midfielders, he’s absolutely a threat to score in transition.

Previous Pick: Ben Ramsey (SSDM - Notre Dame)

No. 8: Utah Archers - Scott Smith (Defense - Johns Hopkins)

My gut says head coach and general manager Chris Bates is targeting a pole here.

The back-to-back champions have a ton of depth offensively and are flush with two-way midfielders, but they lack depth at pole position. Bates has options like the aforementioned Verch or Wayer, but Smith strikes me as a player the Archers could target.

The aggressive righty plays a similar style to Denver’s JT Giles-Harris by using his strong lower body to push dodgers out of dangerous areas.

He also played some LSM in college before becoming a permanent close defender at Johns Hopkins, so his versatility could be appealing to Utah here, allowing the Archers to mix and match defensive pieces accordingly.

Previous Pick: Sam English (Midfield - Syracuse)