2026 Pre-Lottery NBA Mock Draft
The most talent-rich NBA Draft class in recent memory, from top to bottom.
The 2026 NBA Draft is rapidly approaching, and we’ll have a real NBA Draft order this coming Sunday. There’s some real chaos scenarios on the table - like Oklahoma City, Indiana, or Dallas having a top-3 pick, and more bad teams than I can remember.
It seems as though the “play-in race” was over in February of this season (particularly because it practically was), but it makes for one of the more intriguing NBA Draft classes of recent memory.
While I don’t necessarily believe there is a Wemby-level talent, I do think there are at least three players independently worth the first overall pick, which will make the following months (even after the lottery) that much more interesting to track, even for the first overall pick.
Let’s get into it.
1. Washington Wizards - AJ Dybantsa - W - BYU
I think AJ Dybantsa has the clearest path to going first overall. He’s a big, shot-hunting wing that NBA teams covet. The Wizards take him here to add to a potential 2026 starting-5 of Trae Young-Tre Johnson-AJ Dybantsa-Alex Sarr-Anthony Davis.
2. Indiana Pacers - Cam Boozer - F - Duke
If Indiana lands at two with Dybantsa off the board, I think there will be a lengthy discussion that includes Caleb Wilson, who brings an eerily similar skill set to Pascal Siakam. In this case, though, I have them taking Boozer as one of the most efficient freshman forwards we have ever seen.
3. Brooklyn Nets - Darryn Peterson - G - Kansas
I find it hard to believe Peterson falls out of the top-3. With the Nets still being such a blank canvas, Peterson makes sense.
I think if he had a year even remotely normal, Peterson would be the odds-on favorite for the first overall pick.
4. Utah Jazz - Caleb Wilson - F - UNC
There’s a strong possibility the Jazz make some roster maneuvering if they end up with the fourth pick and blocked into taking Caleb Wilson. That could mean a pick swap with a team in the 5-9 range, moving off of players currently on the roster, or something different.
The hard part would be that the team invested a ton of resources into Jaren Jackson, another power forward-only player.
They’d find a way to make it work, though.
5. Sacramento Kings - Darius Acuff - G - Arkansas
The Kings’ roster is such a mess. They have old, expensive players and almost no young talent outside of Maxime Raynaud. Acuff would represent a step in the right direction, though it’s hard to go wrong with the amount of talent available here.
6. Memphis Grizzlies - Keaton Wagler - G - Illinois
Keaton Wagler just feels like a Zach Kleiman pick, right? Wagler is a high-feel, lengthy guard who had great efficiency as the primary option on a good college team. He’s my current favorite of the guards in this range, and I could see him going as high as the fourth overall pick, if the lottery balls get really wacky.
7. Atlanta Hawks - Kingston Flemings - G - Houston
Kingston Flemings has the highest upside of any of the guards outside the top-4 picks. He’s electric downhill, has a wide range of skills, but will need to grow as a perimeter threat. If he puts it together as a 3-level scorer, he will be looked back on as a steal.
8. Dallas Mavericks - Yaxel Lendeborg - B - Michigan
The Dallas Mavericks just hired Masai Ujiri, who has an affinity for lengthy, high-feel basketball players. Lendeborg fits the bill, and helps the Mavericks get better in 2026-27. I could see them taking either of Brayden Burries or Mikel Brown here, but Yaxel feels too much like Masai’s flavor of hooper.
He’s the guy who took OG Anunoby, Pascal Siakam, Bruno Caboclo, and Scottie Barnes.
9. Chicago Bulls - Brayden Burries - W - Arizona
There’s a debate here between Burries and Brown, but I’ve got Chicago opting for Burries here - a really strong fit alongside point guard Josh Giddey.
10. Milwaukee Bucks - Mikel Brown - G - Louisville
The Bucks having Brown fall to them with the 10th pick is a product of how strong this draft class is. There are arguably 10 players in 2026 worthy of a top-5 pick in a normal draft class.
Brown projects as the point guard of the future with All-Star upside. Giannis is probably gone, but Milwaukee will have a nice building block in the backcourt.
11. Golden State Warriors - Aday Mara - B - Michigan
Aday Mara climbed up draft boards throughout the NCAA tournament, and he’s one of the most intriguing players in the draft this year. He’s a monster on the interior and is a great decision-maker with the ball in his hands. I think NBA teams will like that combination of skills.
12. OKC Thunder - Nate Ament - F - Tennessee
Ament is a year away from being an impact NBA player, but I do buy into his upside more than most. I don’t think the NBA is going to let a 6-10 forward with Ament’s shooting talent fall further than this.
13. Miami Heat - Karim Lopez - F - INTL
Karim Lopez is a toolsy wing/forward who impressed a level greater than college basketball. There are strides that need to be made in terms of consistency, but he feels like a “Heat Culture” pick.
14. Charlotte Hornets - Jayden Quaintance - B - Kentucky
The Hornets are in a unique spot. They were one of the best teams in the NBA over the ladder half of the season, have two top-20 draft picks, and a lot of movable contracts. In theory, they’re positioned for an “all-in” move, but general manager Jeff Peterson has continually stressed not wanting to skip steps.
Quaintance feels like a bet Charlotte would be willing to make. He’s got a ton of upside, broke out as a 17-year-old for Arizona State, and despite the injury/weirdness around this past season, could become a game-changing defensive big man in the right circumstances.
Quaintance isn’t a unique offensive talent, but Charlotte could take him and bet on having 48 minutes of above-average rim protection every night.
Check out SportCLT’s Charlotte Hornets Draft Guide.
15. Chicago Bulls - Hannes Steinbach - B - Washington
The Bulls added Brayden Burries already, and Steinbach is someone who has an elite interior skillset offensively. He’d be an interesting center prospect to pair with Matas Buzelis and Noa Essengue.
16. Memphis Grizzlies - Morez Johnson - B - Michigan
Morez Johnson is the third Michigan front court player to be drafted, and he’s another fun one. I think the Grizzlies are pretty close to being a blank canvas, and jump-starting a rebuild around a core of Wagler-Coward-Johnson is fun. That’s a high-floor trio.
17. OKC Thunder - Ebuka Okorie - G - Stanford
The Thunder have the ability to shoot for the moon with their draft picks. First, Nate Ament, now Ebuka Okorie.
Okorie is a smaller guard, but he’s twitched up, can get downhill, and was under-scouted for the majority of this past season.
18. Charlotte Hornets - Labaron Philon - G - Alabama
There’s a strong chance several of the guards fall on draft night (there are just so many of them) which could represent a strong value play for a team like the Hornets. Philon being available at 18 would be a ‘run-the-card-in’ type pick, and Charlotte could feasibly take Philon with the understanding that they do need another player in the backcourt.
Check out SportCLT’s Charlotte Hornets Draft Guide.
19. Toronto Raptors - Amari Allen - W - Alabama
Wings that can dribble, pass, and shoot will always be in high demand. There’s a case to be made that Allen is a late lottery pick in most draft classes, but the Raptors add his length and shooting (it will be better in the NBA, in my opinion) in the late-teens.
20. San Antonio Spurs - Cam Carr - W - Baylor
Cam Carr is a high-floor wing that can score and defend. NBA teams are likely to value that in the mid-late first round, and San Antonio is going to always be in need of low-cost role players as they build around Victor Wembanyama, Dylan Harper, and Stephon Castle.
21. Detroit Pistons - Bennett Stirtz - G - Iowa
The Detroit Pistons need shooting above all else, and while there’s not a front court player available here that brings high-level shooting, Stirtz projects as a plug-and-play guard that offers elite shooting and table setting.
22. Philadelphia 76ers - Koa Peat - F - Arizona
Peat is a ball of intensity, but there’s some legitimate NBA-level feel to his game as well. There will be questions in the coming months about his modern NBA fit (especially with how poor his shot projects), but there’s an NBA player there, teams just need to find it.
23. Atlanta Hawks - Chris Cenac - B - Houston
Chris Cenac is a big man that could really develop into a special player. There’s a lot of modern skill in Cenac, who will probably need to redshirt for a year before seeing rotational minutes.
24. New York Knicks - Tounde Yessoufou - W - Baylor
If Tounde Yessoufou can hone in on a consistent outside jumper, his overall physicality and frame could help him become one of the steals in the ladder half of the first round. I think Yessoufou will have a wide range of outcomes come draft night.
25. Los Angeles Lakers - Joshua Jefferson - F - Iowa State
Joshua Jefferson is a ready-made front court role player. While the shot has come and gone, there’s length, feel, and defensive makeup that should see Jefferson as a steady 7th-9th man for multiple contracts.
26. Denver Nuggets - Isaiah Evans - W - Duke
Isaiah Evans needs to put on weight, but I buy the shot and ability to score. Evans has the potential to become a high-end rotational piece, one that would fit really well alongside Nikola Jokic.
27. Boston Celtics - Allen Graves - B - Santa Clara
I don’t know if there’s a player I have less of a grasp for in this class than Allen Graves. He’s a dirty work, ‘do-the-little-things’ type of player that every NBA team needs. The competition level wasn’t great, and Graves only started four games for Santa Clara, but his impact in his minutes were undeniable, and he’s a modern NBA fit as a big man.
28. Minnesota Timberwolves - Meleek Thomas - W -
Arkansas
Taking Meleek Thomas is a bet on his shooting, motor, and ability to extend advantages. There’s a very real shot he goes as early as the mid-first round, but the Timberwolves snag him here as an off-ball player to add to their core.
29. Cleveland Cavaliers - Henri Veesaar - B - UNC
If the Cavaliers are serious about keeping their front court of Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen intact, a player like Henri Veesaar could unlock of what those players have to offer - purely based on Veesaar’s spacing ability.
30. Dallas Mavericks - Dailyn Swain - W - Texas
Dailyn Swain is such a unique player. In SportCLT’s draft guide, I described him as a “guard in a wing’s body." There is some real skill to how he approaches the game, especially as a pick-and-roll ball-handler.
I have my concerns, though. I find myself lower on Swain’s off-ball skill set. I think his catch-and-shoot ability isn’t the best (despite there being some signs of shooting touch), and he’s a very specific type of offensive scorer - in ways that I simply don’t think he’ll get many reps at in the NBA.
I’m not saying Swain can’t work at the NBA level, but I’m concerned about how his skill set translates. He was great on-the-ball at Texas, but doesn’t quite have NBA-level on-ball skills. And if you’re taking his biggest appeal as a player away, it makes the path to becoming a consistent role player much more difficult.
Still, he’s worth a bet in the first round.