French forward Noa Essengue, a projected top-20 pick, will enter the 2025 NBA draft, he told ESPN Friday.

"Since I was a kid, it's been my dream to get drafted by an NBA team," Essengue said. "My goal now is to be a top-10 pick. I'm focused on the end of my season, hoping to win a championship, but after the playoffs, I will need to get myself ready, because there's a big gap between Europe and the NBA."

Essengue, ESPN's No. 17 ranked draft prospect, plays for German team Ratiopharm Ulm, which competes in both the domestic BBL league and the intercontinental EuroCup league. The 6-foot-10, 18-year-old power forward is averaging 10.8 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.0 steal in 24 minutes per game through 43 games, shooting 63% for 2.

"Coming to Ulm was the best decision I could have made for my career," Essengue said. "This is my second season here, and we're working nonstop to develop my skills. There's great infrastructure, a beautiful practice facility, a huge weight room, coaches and support staff around anytime if we want to practice extra. They let young players play here, and the club doesn't put any pressure on the coach for results, which is why we can play our best basketball and win games."

Born Dec. 18, 2006, Essengue is the second-youngest prospect in this draft, just three days older than Cooper Flagg. He would have had to wait until the 2026 NBA draft to be eligible if he had been born two weeks later.

Despite his youth, Essengue has carved out a strong role with Ulm against high-level international competition, excelling in the EuroCup and helping his team to the second-best record in the BBL just weeks before the start of the German league playoffs. Essengue became one of the youngest players ever to make a French senior national team debut when he was called up to France's FIBA EuroBasket qualifying campaign as a 17-year-old last November.

Essengue creates matchup problems every time he steps on the floor, showing impressive speed covering ground fluidly, getting off the floor quickly for dunks and offensive rebounds, and often being tasked with guarding point guards thanks to his quick feet and outstanding length. He draws fouls prolifically, finishes effectively around the rim despite his slight frame, and shows a good feel for cutting, leaking out in transition and finding teammates with intelligent passes.

"My biggest strength is my defense," Essengue said. "I have the versatility to guard 1 to 5. If an NBA coach wanted to put me on the court right now, it would be because I can stay in front of point guards and also put a body on centers. I need to keep improving every aspect of my game, though. I'm playing tougher every game, trying to match the intensity and physicality of my opponents."

"I want to be a guy who can do everything on the court. I watch a lot of Kevin Durant, Brandon Ingram, and Kawhi Leonard, players that can dribble, pass, shoot and defend."

With the college basketball season over, NBA teams will now focus their attention en masse on international prospects like Essengue. He is in the final games of his team's regular season before turning the page to the playoffs, starting in mid-May.

The NBA draft combine will be held May 11-18 in Chicago, and the draft will be June 25-26 in New York.

Jonathan Givony is an NBA draft expert and the founder and co-owner of DraftExpress.com, a private scouting and analytics service used by NBA, NCAA and international teams.