NBA Mock Draft 2026: Prospects Have Decisions to Be Made

Getty

Yaxel Lendeborg #23 is a lottery pick in the latest 2026 NBA mock draft.

Now, it gets real. For players hoping to get their name called in the June draft, and to keep their names churning through the 2026 NBA mock draft process, the collegiate season is over and they have nine days–the deadline is April 16– to apply to the NCAA’s Undergraduate Advisory Committee, which will give them feedback on their likely draft prospects.

After that, they can participate in the G League combine starting on May 8, and/or the NBA combine starting on May 10, which is also the date of the draft lottery. Players have until May 27 to withdraw from the draft. We’ll get word of who’s planning to do what soon. For now, though, with the collegiate season behind us and Michigan crowned champs, here’s the latest NBA mock draft.

1. Washington Wizards: AJ Dybantsa, SF, BYU. The Wizards should not overthink this. There are plenty of needs on the roster, but a star wing is something any rebuilder needs. Dybantsa is locked in as a Top 2 pick, a versatile 6-foot-9 scorer who has a natural, springy athleticism.
2. Indiana Pacers: Darryn Peterson, SG, Kansas. As much as many in the NBA were put off by Peterson’s strange trip at Kansas this year, no one is going to drop him too far. The Pacers have strong options at point guard, center and power forward–a scoring wing is on the docket. Even those around the NBA who are hard on Peterson’s cramping issues don’t see him getting past No. 4 overall.
3. Brooklyn Nets: Cameron Boozer, PF, Duke. Scout: “He has so much skill around the basket, he knows how to win, and he makes everyone around him better. He will score 25 points and still throw elbows, set screens, dive on the floor. He is a guy you want on your team.” Nets are in need of a PF (and, well, everything else, too).
   

   ---

   NBA Mock Draft 2026: Acuff Up to No. 4

4. Sacramento Kings:  Darius Acuff Jr., PG, Arkansas. There’s a debate on about who’s the top prospect after the Big Three, but now, we’re giving the edge to Acuff. John Calipari has been stumping for Acuff, but he doesn’t need to. He’s a do-it-all point guard who is still trending up. “He could break into the Top 3 depending on how the lottery goes,” one scout said.
5. Utah Jazz: Keaton Wagler, G, Illinois. He’s averaging 17.5 points in four tournament games, making 44.0% of his 3s. Scout: “His upside is not as high as some other guys, but he is a very smart, very purely talented scorer and ballhandler. I love how he sees a game and picks it apart. That’s a skill that translates to the next level.”
6. Atlanta Hawks (via New Orleans Pelicans): Caleb Wilson, PF, North Carolina. His raw athleticism at 6-foot-10 will get him into the Top 10, probably the Top 5. He can’t shoot (26% from the 3-point line), and whomever drafts him will gamble that he can change that over time. A late-season thumb injury and UNC’s collapse won’t hurt his stock much. There’s too much talent.
7. Memphis Grizzlies: Mikel Brown, Jr., PG, Louisville. The Grizz are poised to move off of Ja Morant. Brown did not have a great year for the Cardinals, as he shot only 41% and missed all of March with a back injury. But he’s still a coveted piece in the NBA, a polished guard whose game should translate to the pros.
8. Dallas Mavericks: Kingston Flemings, PG, Houston. Absolutely a downhill player whose speed changes the game. Wherever he lands will wind up being a team that pushes the tempo and gets into transition. He’ll need more confidence in his perimeter shot, but the Mavericks would be a good long-term fit. 
   

   ---

   Yaxel Lendeborg Lands With Warriors

9. Chicago Bulls: Brayden Burries, G, Arizona. After a rough start to the year, Burries’ stock has continued to rise into the Top 10. He’s a 6-foot-4 two-way combo guard who can hold his own on an NBA floor from the get-go, but the hope is that he develops into a solid starting point guard. He’s 13-for-19 on 3-pointers in the tournament, and that’s helping boost him now.
   
10. Milwaukee Bucks: Labaron Philon, PG, Alabama. Scout: “He is all over the board. I think where he lands will depend on whether he gets a team who sees him as a starting point guard—and the way he played to close the season and into the tournament, I think his stock is up.”
11. Golden State Warriors: Yaxel Lendeborg, PF, Michigan. The Warriors would welcome experience. He’s got it. Scout: “He’s going to be 24 in September, and that’s the big thing with him—he is ready to play in the NBA but you’d expect him to be more of a versatile, dirty-work kind of role player. That’s not a bad thing, but he fits best with a contender. Some teams might be looking for a bigger swing.”
12. Portland Trail Blazers: Koa Peat, PF, Arizona. Peat is 6-foot-8 and plays with some power, with the potential to land in the lottery depending on how things shake out with the other PFs in this draft—there is depth in this draft but not necessarily with size. How a team views him is probably based on whether it thinks he can develop a 3-pointer (6-for-19 in his college career)
13. Miami Heat:  Cameron Carr, SF, Baylor. Carr is a high-volume scorer entering a league that has turned up its nose as high-volume scorers. But he is 6-foot-6 with a 7-foot-1 wingspan and good shooting ability—he’ll just need a team and system to tame him a bit. The Heat could move off Tyler Herro, making Carr a good fit. 
    
14. Memphis Grizzlies (via Orlando Magic): Nate Ament, SF, Tennessee. His 2-for-12 showing vs. Michigan didn’t help his stock. Scout: “Up and down year for him. It was good he came back after getting hurt (ankle injury in late February), but there’s a lot of question marks there. He’s a shooter at 6-foot-10, though, and he showed enough to keep him in the lottery. You just have to trust that you can develop him.”
    

    ---

    Braylon Mullins Cracking NBA Mock Draft 2026 Top 20?

15. Oklahoma City Thunder (via Los Angeles Clippers): Jayden Quaintance, PF/C, Kentucky. Quaintance is the wildcard of this draft, a big guy who was coming off ACL surgery this season and went out again after a brief return this winter, an unfortunate bit of punctuation on a frustrating year. The knee is an obvious concern, but if healthy, Quaintance can be a defensive force inside. High risk, high reward.
16. Oklahoma City Thunder (from Philadelphia 76ers): Karim Lopez, F, New Zealand Breakers. Lopez has all the physical attributes (6-foot-9, 7-foot-1 wingspan) to make scouts’ mouths water. But he didn’t quite put it together in his NBL season, where he averaged 11.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 49% shooting. He’s a project and needs to go to a team that can be patient.The Thunder can be patient.
17. Charlotte Hornets: Chris Cenac Jr., PF/C, Houston. The draft has size, and that could hurt Cenac. But the Hornets can load up on the frontcourt with their two first-rounders. Scout: “He is a risk, all the big guys in this draft are a risk. You’d like to see more rim protection, you’d like to see more consistency. But he can develop into a stretch big guy, and that’s at a premium, so he probably winds up in the lottery. There’s a lot of untapped potential.”
18. Toronto Raptors: Braylon Mullins, SG, UConn. There’s potential that he could return to Storrs, as his season was somewhat disappointing. The Huskies’ run to the NCAA final helped his stock, though the 4-for-17 finish vs. Michigan was unsightly. He is firmly in the middle of the first round, with a chance at being a lottery pick.
19. Charlotte Hornets (via Phoenix Suns): Thomas Haugh, PF, Florida. Haugh is seen as something of a safe pick for a draft with a lot of upside players. There’s hope that his 3-point shot will develop into a weapon—he needs improvement there.The Hornets are on the hunt for size up front.
20. San Antonio Spurs (via Atlanta Hawks): Hannes Steinbach, PF, Washington. Anytime you get a German prospect from Wurzburg, the imagination is going to run wild. But Steinbach is not Dirk—he is, instead, a dominant rebounder who led the nation with 11.8 boards per game.
    

    Koa Peat #10 of the Arizona Wildcats drives against Chris Cenac Jr. #5 of the Houston Cougars. Both are top picks in the 2026 NBA mock draft.

    ---

    Good Value Just Outside Top 20

21. Detroit Pistons (via Minnesota Timberwolves). Isaiah Evans, SF, Duke. Evans has slowly built up his stock after an inconsistent start, and appears to be firm as a Top 20 pick. He’s a durable three-level scorer whose game should translate well to the NBA.
22. Philadelphia 76ers (via Houston Rockets):  Morez Johnson, PF, Michigan. Johnson has shown himself to be more versatile and efficient than his reputation held coming into the season after spending last year with Illinois. He’s a rim-runner first and foremost, but he can defend, score out of dribble handoffs and has excelled ina  double-big lineup, which more and more NBA teams like.
23. Atlanta Hawks (via Cleveland Cavaliers): Christian Anderson, G, Texas Tech. The fact that teams are more likely to be looking for size in this draft is probably the only thing that would hold Anderson’s stock into the 20s. He is a very good shooter (41.5% from the 3-point line this year) and playmaker who can play on and off the ball.
24. Los Angeles Lakers: Patrick Ngongba II, C, Duke. The Lakers will be looking big here, and there are plenty of candidates. Ngongba has the most upside of LA’s choices, and will likely only be on the board because of a foot injury at the end of the season. He has the size, skill and defensive chops, but does he have the rim-running athleticism teams want?
25. New York Knicks: Aday Mara, C, Michigan. Mara has boosted his stock in recent weeks, mostly thanks to 11 blocks in four tournament games. At 7-foot-3, has been showing a bit more variety in his offensive game, creating his own shots and scoring. Aday’s advantages are mostly defensive, though, and obvious for a team that must add size. No matter what happens with Mitchell Robinson in free agency, the Knicks must think big.
26. Denver Nuggets: Dailyn Swain, G/F, Texas. Scout: “He is 6-foot-8 and he has always been sort of a question mark. But the more this season has gone on, and now the NCAA tournament, you see him converting potential into performance. He is passing better, he is shooting better, he is making better decisions. And he’s just scratching the surface.”
    

    ---

    NBA Mock Draft 2026: Experience Available Late

27. Boston Celtics: Alex Karaban, PF, UConn. The Celtics do not draft for need, but it is hard not to notice they really need some size up front. Karaban will be 24 in November, and is not a negative for the Celtics, who need cheap labor. A 17-and-11 showing in the NCAA final gives him a boost.
28. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Detroit Pistons): Tyler Tanner, PG, Vanderbilt. He’s only 6-feet, and that’s the big thing that works against Tanner. But he has shown a knack for playmaking and scoring, and his quickness is undeniable. His NCAA tournament performance—53 points in two games—has his stock on the rise.
29. Cleveland Cavaliers (via San Antonio Spurs): Bennett Stirtz, PG, Iowa. Stirtz will be 23 in the fall, and that will be counted against him in the draft. He will need to add strength and physicality, but he is a polished playmaker who can shoot from deep, though his 0-for-9 showing in the Hawkeyes’ upset over Florida was not his finest moment.
30. Dallas Mavericks (via Oklahoma City Thunder): Amari Allen, SF, Alabama. Scout: “If someone does not give him a first-round promise, he could go back (to school). But he is a smart player who has some areas of development still in front of him—I think a playoff team would give him a good look and maybe promise him.”