The 2026 NBA Draft is considered one of the strongest in years. The consensus #1 target is AJ Dybantsa (BYU SF), though Darryn Peterson (Kansas SG) and Cameron Boozer (Duke PF, Naismith + AP POY) both have real cases for the top pick. The Washington Wizards won the May 10 lottery (14% odds, tied with Indiana and Brooklyn) and hold the No. 1 pick; the draft is June 23-24 at Barclays Center.
Strongest groups: wings and point guards. Thinnest: traditional centers (only a few lottery-grade 5s: Aday Mara, Jayden Quaintance, Chris Cenac Jr.). Wild cards: Dash Daniels (NBL), Karim Lopez (NZ Breakers), and a deep European class led by Hugo Gonzalez and Kasparas Jakucionis.
Top of the class: Darius Acuff Jr. (Arkansas). Explosive downhill lead guard; lottery fit for PG-needy clubs.
| # | Name | Team | HT | Age | Round | Scouting Nugget |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Darius Acuff Jr. | Arkansas | 6-3 | 19.4 | R1 5-12 | Explosive downhill lead guard; lottery fit for PG-needy clubs |
| 3 | Kingston Flemings | Houston | 6-4 | 19.3 | R1 6-14 | Houston PG; defense + shot-making combo |
| 4 | Mikel Brown Jr. | Louisville | 6-5 | 20.0 | R1 9-16 | Oversized PG with passing chops |
| 5 | Labaron Philon Jr. | Alabama | 6-4 | 20.4 | R1 16-28 | SEC PG, creation + shot-making |
| 6 | Christian Anderson | Texas Tech | 6-3 | 20.0 | R1 19-30 | Big 12 creation specialist |
| 7 | Bennett Stirtz | Iowa | 6-4 | 22.5 | R1-R2 | Drake transfer, pro-ready lead guard |
| 8 | Meleek Thomas | Arkansas | 6-3 | 19.7 | R2 | Arkansas freshman scorer |
| 9 | Tyler Tanner | Vanderbilt | 6-3 | 20.2 | R2 | Vandy PG, shooter |
| 10 | Ebuka Okorie | Stanford | 6-3 | 19.0 | R2 | Stanford freshman PG |
| 11 | Braden Smith | Purdue | 6-0 | 22.7 | R2 | Purdue PG; elite passer, size question |
| 12 | Sergio de Larrea | Valencia (Spain) | 6-6 | 20.3 | R2 | Spanish ACB starter |
| 13 | Jaden Bradley | Arizona | 6-3 | 22.6 | R2 | Arizona vet PG |
| 14 | Bruce Thornton | Ohio State | 6-2 | 22.6 | R2 | Ohio State veteran guard |
| 15 | Kylan Boswell | Illinois | 6-2 | 21.0 | R2 | Illinois PG, two-way |
| 16 | Milos Uzan | Houston | 6-4 | 23.3 | R2 | Houston lead guard |
| 17 | Jeremy Fears Jr. | Michigan State | 6-2 | 21.0 | R2 | MSU floor general |
| 18 | Ja'Kobi Gillespie | Tennessee | 6-1 | 22.1 | R2 | Tennessee PG; Belmont transfer |
| 19 | Tamin Lipsey | Iowa State | 6-1 | 22.8 | R2-UDFA | ISU lockdown PG |
| 20 | Donovan Dent | UCLA | 6-2 | 22.3 | R2-UDFA | New Mexico transfer at UCLA |
| 21 | Quadir Copeland | NC State | 6-6 | 22.6 | UDFA | Syracuse transfer at NC State |
| 22 | Seth Trimble | North Carolina | 6-3 | 21.7 | R2-UDFA | UNC PG |
| 23 | Ben Saraf | Ratiopharm Ulm (Germany) | 6-5 | 19.8 | R2 | Israeli lead guard |
| 24 | Cayden Boozer | Duke | 6-4 | 18.7 | R2-UDFA | Cam's twin, pure PG playmaker |
| 25 | Kasparas Jakucionis | Illinois | 6-6 | 19.7 | R1-R2 | Illinois Lithuanian combo |
| 26 | Darrion Trammell | San Diego State | 5-10 | 23.3 | UDFA | SDSU PG |
| 27 | Boogie Fland | Arkansas | 6-2 | 19.3 | R2 | Arkansas freshman scorer |
Top of the class: Darryn Peterson (Kansas). Most gifted scorer in the class; top-3 lock.
| # | Name | Team | HT | Age | Round | Scouting Nugget |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Darryn Peterson | Kansas | 6-6 | 19.1 | R1 top 3 | Most gifted scorer in the class; top-3 lock |
| 2 | Keaton Wagler | Illinois | 6-6 | 19.2 | R1 5-10 | Big SG with scoring ceiling and pick-and-roll feel |
| 3 | Brayden Burries | Arizona | 6-4 | 20.6 | R1 10-18 | Combo guard scorer |
| 4 | Braylon Mullins | UConn | 6-6 | 20.0 | R1 17-28 | UConn sharpshooter |
| 5 | Isaiah Evans | Duke | 6-6 | 20.3 | R1-R2 | Duke sniper; 40%+ 3PT |
| 6 | Cameron Carr | Baylor | 6-5 | 21.4 | R1-R2 | Baylor wing |
| 7 | Dame Sarr | Duke | 6-7 | 19.8 | R2 | Italian import, Duke wing |
| 8 | Juke Harris | Wake Forest | 6-5 | 20.7 | R2 | ACC shooter |
| 9 | Ryan Conwell | Louisville | 6-4 | 21.8 | R2 | Louisville shooter |
| 10 | Dash Daniels | Melbourne United (NBL) | 6-5 | 18.3 | R2 | Dyson Daniels' brother; elite defender |
| 10 | Alijah Arenas | USC | 6-6 | 19.1 | R2 | Gilbert Arenas' son; USC freshman |
| 11 | Paul McNeil Jr. | NC State | 6-7 | 20.0 | R2 | ACC combo guard |
| 12 | Richie Saunders | BYU | 6-4 | 24.6 | R2-UDFA | BYU senior shooter |
| 13 | Adam Atamna | ASVEL (France) | 6-5 | 18.3 | R2-UDFA | Young French guard |
| 13 | Emanuel Sharp | Houston | 6-4 | 22.1 | R2 | Houston shooter |
| 14 | Solo Ball | UConn | 6-4 | 22.3 | R2 | UConn sharpshooter |
| 15 | KJ Lewis | Georgetown | 6-4 | 21.7 | R2-UDFA | Arizona transfer at Georgetown |
| 16 | Tyler Nickel | Vanderbilt | 6-7 | 22.6 | R2-UDFA | UVA transfer at Vandy |
| 17 | John Blackwell | Wisconsin | 6-4 | 21.3 | R2 | Wisconsin wing |
| 18 | Tucker DeVries | Indiana | 6-7 | 23.3 | R2-UDFA | Drake transfer at Indiana; shooter |
| 19 | Jaron Pierre Jr. | SMU | 6-5 | 23.7 | UDFA | SMU shooter |
| 20 | Otega Oweh | Kentucky | 6-5 | 22.8 | R2-UDFA | Kentucky combo guard |
| 21 | Fletcher Loyer | Purdue | 6-4 | 22.6 | UDFA | Purdue shooter |
| 22 | Kashie Natt | Sam Houston | 6-6 | 23.2 | UDFA | Low-major sleeper |
| 23 | Ben Henshall | Perth Wildcats (NBL) | 6-5 | 19.5 | R2-UDFA | Perth combo guard; pulled from 2025 class |
| 24 | Miles Byrd | San Diego State | 6-7 | 22.0 | R2-UDFA | SDSU 3-and-D wing |
| 25 | Hugo Gonzalez | Real Madrid (Spain) | 6-6 | 19.5 | R2 | Real Madrid teenager |
| 26 | Sion James | Duke | 6-6 | 23.2 | R2-UDFA | Tulane transfer at Duke |
| 27 | Kam Jones | Marquette | 6-5 | 23.5 | R2-UDFA | Marquette senior scorer |
| 28 | Chaz Lanier | Tennessee | 6-5 | 23.8 | R2-UDFA | Tennessee sharpshooter |
| 29 | Alijah Martin | Florida | 6-2 | 22.9 | R2-UDFA | Florida natty-winning wing |
| 30 | Nique Clifford | Colorado State | 6-6 | 24.0 | R2-UDFA | CSU veteran wing |
| 31 | Jase Richardson | Michigan State | 6-3 | 19.5 | R1-R2 | Jason Richardson's son; MSU frosh |
Top of the class: AJ Dybantsa (BYU). Elite jumbo wing scorer; 25.5/6.8/3.7 as a frosh; Paul George-grade ceiling.
| # | Name | Team | HT | Age | Round | Scouting Nugget |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AJ Dybantsa | BYU | 6-9 | 19.1 | R1 #1 | Elite jumbo wing scorer; 25.5/6.8/3.7 as a frosh; Paul George-grade ceiling |
| 2 | Nate Ament | Tennessee | 6-10 | 19.3 | R1 7-15 | 6-10 wing with elite length; defensive projection |
| 3 | Karim Lopez | New Zealand Breakers | 6-9 | 19.0 | R1 11-20 | NBL lottery-level wing out of Mexico |
| 4 | Dailyn Swain | Texas | 6-6 | 20.7 | R2 | Xavier transfer, two-way wing |
| 5 | Amari Allen | Alabama | 6-7 | 20.2 | R2 | Bama wing |
| 6 | Alex Karaban | UConn | 6-8 | 23.4 | R2 | Two-time natty champ wing |
| 7 | Tounde Yessoufou | Baylor | 6-5 | 19.9 | R2 | Elite 2025 recruit turned Baylor starter |
| 8 | Pryce Sandfort | Nebraska | 6-7 | 21.3 | R2 | Big Ten shooter |
| 9 | Matthew Able | NC State | 6-8 | 19.7 | R2 | NC State frosh wing |
| 10 | Andrej Stojakovic | Illinois | 6-7 | 21.6 | R2 | Peja's son; Cal transfer now at Illinois |
| 11 | Nick Martinelli | Northwestern | 6-7 | 22.0 | R2-UDFA | Northwestern scorer |
| 12 | Cade Tyson | Minnesota | 6-7 | 22.7 | R2-UDFA | UNC transfer now at Minnesota |
| 13 | Darrion Williams | NC State | 6-6 | 23.0 | R2-UDFA | Texas Tech transfer; tough wing |
| 14 | Noah Penda | Le Mans (France) | 6-8 | 20.0 | R2 | French forward; international polish |
| 15 | Keyshawn Hall | Auburn | 6-7 | 22.5 | R2-UDFA | UCF transfer at Auburn |
| 16 | Bryce Hopkins | St. John's | 6-7 | 22.4 | R2-UDFA | Providence transfer |
| 17 | Coen Carr | Michigan State | 6-7 | 20.8 | R2-UDFA | MSU athlete |
| 18 | Drake Powell | North Carolina | 6-6 | 19.6 | R2 | UNC two-way wing |
| 19 | Will Riley | Illinois | 6-8 | 19.5 | R1-R2 | Illinois Canadian wing |
| 20 | Carter Bryant | Arizona | 6-8 | 19.5 | R2 | Arizona freshman wing |
| 21 | Adou Thiero | Arkansas | 6-8 | 21.5 | R2 | Arkansas athletic wing |
Top of the class: Cameron Boozer (Duke). Naismith + AP POY as a freshman; 39.1% 3PT.
| # | Name | Team | HT | Age | Round | Scouting Nugget |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cameron Boozer | Duke | 6-9 | 18.7 | R1 top 3 | Naismith + AP POY as a freshman; 39.1% 3PT |
| 2 | Caleb Wilson | North Carolina | 6-10 | 19.7 | R1 4-8 | Versatile 6-10 playmaking forward; lottery riser |
| 3 | Yaxel Lendeborg | Michigan | 6-9 | 23.5 | R1 12-22 | UAB transfer; DI All-American production |
| 4 | Thomas Haugh | Florida | 6-9 | 22.8 | R1 13-24 | Versatile SEC forward |
| 5 | Hannes Steinbach | Washington | 6-11 | 19.9 | R1 15-28 | German big; 21.1/12.9 over Washington's final 8 games |
| 6 | Koa Peat | Arizona | 6-8 | 19.2 | R1-R2 | Bully-ball combo forward |
| 7 | Morez Johnson Jr. | Michigan | 6-9 | 20.2 | R2 | Physical big |
| 8 | Allen Graves | Santa Clara | 6-9 | 19.7 | R2 | WCC breakout forward |
| 9 | Joshua Jefferson | Iowa State | 6-8 | 22.4 | R2 | ISU combo forward |
| 10 | Zuby Ejiofor | St. John's | 6-9 | 22.0 | R2 | St. John's big; Pitino development win |
| 11 | Milan Momcilovic | Iowa State | 6-8 | 21.5 | R2 | ISU stretch 4 |
| 12 | Joseph Tugler | Houston | 6-8 | 21.3 | R2 | Houston energy big |
| 13 | Baba Miller | Cincinnati | 6-11 | 22.2 | R2 | Spanish stretch 4 |
| 14 | JT Toppin | Texas Tech | 6-9 | 20.8 | R2 | Texas Tech explosive big |
| 15 | Michael Ruzic | Joventut (Spain) | 6-10 | 19.5 | R2 | Croatian forward at Joventut |
| 16 | Nolan Winter | Wisconsin | 6-11 | 21.4 | R2 | Badgers stretch big |
| 17 | Maliq Brown | Duke | 6-9 | 22.4 | R2-UDFA | Duke energy big |
| 18 | Trevon Brazile | Arkansas | 6-10 | 23.2 | R2-UDFA | Arkansas forward, bounce-back from injury |
| 19 | Tyler Bilodeau | UCLA | 6-9 | 22.0 | R2-UDFA | UCLA stretch 4 |
| 20 | Mouhamed Faye | Paris Basket (France) | 6-9 | 21.2 | R2 | Senegalese big in French LNB |
| 21 | Trey Kaufman-Renn | Purdue | 6-9 | 23.6 | R2-UDFA | Purdue skilled big |
| 22 | Dillon Mitchell | St. John's | 6-8 | 22.5 | R2-UDFA | Athletic forward |
| 23 | Mark Mitchell | Missouri | 6-8 | 22.6 | R2-UDFA | Duke-to-Mizzou transfer |
| 24 | Malik Reneau | Miami | 6-9 | 22.4 | R2-UDFA | Indiana transfer at Miami |
| 25 | Asa Newell | Georgia | 6-11 | 19.4 | R2 | UGA skilled big |
| 26 | Collin Murray-Boyles | South Carolina | 6-8 | 20.3 | R1-R2 | South Carolina skilled 4 |
| 27 | Johni Broome | Auburn | 6-10 | 23.5 | R2 | Auburn vet; National POY candidate |
Top of the class: Aday Mara (Michigan). 7-3 Spanish big; UCLA transfer.
| # | Name | Team | HT | Age | Round | Scouting Nugget |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aday Mara | Michigan | 7-3 | 21.0 | R1 14-25 | 7-3 Spanish big; UCLA transfer |
| 2 | Chris Cenac Jr. | Houston | 6-11 | 19.2 | R1 18-30 | Houston frontcourt anchor |
| 3 | Jayden Quaintance | Kentucky | 6-10 | 18.7 | R1 20-30 | Teenage 5 with shot-blocking upside |
| 4 | Motiejus Krivas | Arizona | 7-2 | 21.4 | R1-R2 | Lithuanian 7-footer |
| 5 | Alex Condon | Florida | 6-11 | 21.7 | R2 | Floridian big; CFB-to-hoops background |
| 6 | Patrick Ngongba II | Duke | 6-11 | 20.1 | R2 | Duke interior |
| 7 | Luigi Suigo | Mega Basket | 7-0 | 19.2 | R2 | Italian C, Mega pipeline |
| 8 | Tarris Reed Jr. | UConn | 6-10 | 22.7 | R2 | UConn post, interior rebounder |
| 9 | Henri Veesaar | North Carolina | 7-0 | 22.0 | R2 | Estonian C at UNC |
| 10 | Flory Bidunga | Kansas | 6-10 | 20.9 | R2 | Kansas rim-roller |
| 11 | Rueben Chinyelu | Florida | 6-11 | 22.5 | R2 | Florida rim protector |
| 12 | Malachi Moreno | Kentucky | 7-0 | 19.5 | R2 | Kentucky freshman big |
| 13 | Ugonna Onyenso | Virginia | 7-0 | 22.0 | R2 | Virginia defensive big |
| 14 | Tomislav Ivisic | Illinois | 7-0 | 22.7 | R2 | Illinois 7-footer; Zvonimir's twin |
| 15 | Zvonimir Ivisic | Illinois | 7-2 | 22.7 | R2-UDFA | Croatian twin; 7-2 stretch 5 |
| 16 | Oscar Cluff | Purdue | 6-11 | 24.4 | UDFA | Australian big; South Dakota State transfer |
| 17 | Felix Okpara | Tennessee | 6-11 | 22.0 | R2-UDFA | Tennessee rim protector |
| 18 | Rafael Castro | George Washington | 6-11 | 23.0 | UDFA | Dominican C at GW |
| 19 | Nate Bittle | Oregon | 7-0 | 22.8 | R2-UDFA | Oregon 7-footer |
| 20 | Danny Wolf | Michigan | 7-0 | 22.0 | R2 | Yale transfer, point-center archetype |
| 21 | Ryan Kalkbrenner | Creighton | 7-1 | 23.9 | R2 | Creighton multi-year All-BIG EAST DPOY |
| 22 | Thomas Sorber | Georgetown | 6-10 | 19.7 | R1-R2 | Georgetown freshman center |
| 23 | Yang Hansen | Qingdao (CBA, China) | 7-1 | 20.4 | R2 | Chinese center |