2026 NBA Mock Draft: Isaac Trotter predicts all 30 first-round picks after last-second developments

Washington will continue to do its due diligence with Cameron Boozer and Darryn Peterson, but the AJ Dybantsa groundswell isn’t disappearing anytime soon. Dybantsa has a chance to be one of the NBA’s most terrifying transition scorers from the jump while doubling as an elite isolation scorer. That’s special stuff. Leading the NBA in scoring is within the range of potential outcomes. Dybantsa’s growth from an iffy playmaker to a good decision-maker is a strong indicator of what could be in store for a prospect who was self-aware enough to diagnose his flaws and do something about them. The 6-foot-9 wing put up ludicrous numbers at BYU, but the best is yet to come. Dybantsa is a worthy choice to become the face of the Wizards’ franchise.

The Cameron Boozer buzz to Utah is not a smokescreen, but Darryn Peterson remains the choice at No. 2. Utah doesn’t want to toil in mediocrity much longer. Peterson becoming a true difference-maker is the quickest way for Utah to become competitive, unless Danny Ainge and the Utah brain trust strongly believe that Boozer is on another tier than Peterson and they have a Lauri Markkanen or Walker Kessler trade up its sleeve that brings in a perimeter difference-maker. Those are big what-ifs. A core of Keyonte George, Darryn Peterson, Ace Bailey, Jaren Jackson Jr., Kessler and Markkanen can be a factor in the West next season. Peterson could become Utah’s version of Devin Booker — a rangy 6-foot-5 shot-maker who can toggle on or off the ball at a moment’s notice. Peterson’s jumper is so silky. He shot 38% from downtown and 43% on midrange jumpers despite having one of the toughest shot diets due to Kansas having little spacing and Peterson’s inability to create a ton of separation. If Peterson can put his leg injuries in the past and rediscover the zoom-zoom burst we saw in high school at Prolific Prep, he can be the best player from this draft.

I’ve maintained that the 2026 NBA Draft is a Big Three, not a Big Four, which makes this pick awfully simple. Cameron Boozer should be the choice, and it’ll go swimmingly. A Boozer-Zach Edey frontcourt just absolutely vaporizes opponents on the glass. That raises the floor for Memphis in a tangible way from Day One, and Boozer has a sterling combination of a high floor and a sky-high ceiling. The 6-foot-9 forward mixes power and finesse with the best of ’em. He can go through defenders or drain treys in eyesockets. But his secret sauce is his mind. Boozer is an outstanding processor who can create advantages as a playmaker in a jiffy. My biggest reservation with Boozer is his heavy feet. Defending in space is going to be a work in progress, but Memphis can cover up some of those flaws with the ginormous Edey waiting on the back line. Betting against Boozer is a fool’s errand. He’s too smart to fail.

Caleb Wilson is a competitive psychopath, and I’m here for all of it. The 6-foot-10 forward has an insatiable desire to win every single night. It’s why he took it personally in every matchup against the top-rated players in this class. Wilson does not have an off switch, and that willingness to run the floor repeatedly should help him be a menacing transition scorer from the jump while polishing the rest of his game. I buy Wilson’s playmaking, especially in the open floor. The ball doesn’t stick. If Chicago wants to continue to play with pace, adding Wilson is like pouring a gallon of gas onto the fire. There are still questions about whether Wilson can add enough skill to his toolbelt to become a jumbo wing, but the combination of power, defensive potential, athleticism and straight dawg is hard to pass up.

The Clippers have been doing plenty of homework on Keaton Wagler for weeks, and I still expect that to be the selection. Wagler is the biggest guard on the board, and he is such a dead-eye shooter, which gives Los Angeles time to figure out if Darius Garland is the PG1 of the future, or if it needs to be the Wagler show. Ultimately, taking the 6-foot-6 guard who can shoot the cover off the ball, rarely makes freshman mistakes and has already packed more than 20 pounds onto his thin frame, makes too much sense. Don’t overlook some of the ancillary aspects of Wagler’s game, either. Wagler told CBS Sports that his dad, Logan, put it in his head early that he should try to create at least one offensive rebound every single game. He tallied 21 games with multiple offensive rebounds at Illinois last year. He also has the IQ and size to be a diligent defender. Wagler has All-Star potential with the mind of a dirty-work role player.

Brooklyn needs to take the best player available, and luckily, a franchise point guard will fall right into its lap. Darius Acuff Jr. walking onto the floor is a terrifying sight for any defense. He has answers to the test at every single level. I’m not concerned about his size — he has a 6-foot-7 wingspan and chiseled shoulders — but I do think it’s fair to worry about his athleticism and attention to detail defensively. When those fears creep in, just flip on the tape, sit back and chuckle at the domination. His 49-point, five-assist, one-turnover game against Alabama was one of the best offensive games I’ve seen from a college guard. Acuff is so, so cold. The Nate Ament-Brooklyn buzz feels like a bluff to try and manufacture a team like Milwaukee to trade up from 10. Sticking at 6 and plucking Acuff makes the most sense.

Sacramento needs a point guard and a star. Louisville’s Mikel Brown Jr. has a tantalizing ceiling that you just can’t pass on, especially for a franchise that wanted to be higher up in the pecking order after winning just 22 games. You can build an entire offense around Brown. He has real positional size, he can shoot rainbow jumpers off the bounce and the playmaking gene is obvious. When he turns the corner and gets to the rack, he can violently punch on defenders. I like the Damian Lillard comparisons for Brown quite a bit. If Brown is the best shooter from this draft class, I wouldn’t be surprised one bit.

This decision is between Michigan center Aday Mara or a point guard. Atlanta’s defense would be one of the best units in the league with Mara in the fold, but Atlanta has a second first-round pick at No. 23. Almost all the point guards are likely gone at that point, but there are some intriguing bigs on the market in the early-20s. That leaves an interesting two-by-two decision at stake. Do you like a Flemings-Henri Veesaar combination more than the best-case scenario that you can get Mara at No. 8 and then maybe Stanford’s Ebuka Okorie at No. 23? It’s a tough call. While I love Mara, so many teams are coveting these point guards, so Atlanta can’t be left high and dry. Taking Flemings at No. 8 assures it leaves this draft with a point guard it can build around. Flemings is the fastest point guard in this class. Speed kills, and the paint touches he generates will be invaluable.

Burries is tough, smart and dependable. He might not have quite enough juice to be a top-two option on a great team, but Burries would be a phenomenal third fiddle. Burries would have every opportunity to be the best version of himself in Dallas, playing alongside Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flagg as a souped-up role player. Burries doesn’t really have many flaws in his game. He can defend, play with pace, play on or off the ball, hit pull-ups or catch-and-shoot 3s and rebound well for his position. Klutch CEO Rich Paul is well aware of how fit everything is in the NBA. I don’t think the Burries-to-Dallas smoke is fake at all. Flagg and Burries are both five-tool players.

Ament is viewed as a high-risk, high-reward player, but I don’t see it that way. There will always be a place in the NBA for a big wing with touch and defensive upside. Defense is the way for Ament to get on the floor early in his career. Milwaukee can give Ament a long runway to work out the kinks in his game, especially if it trades Giannis Antetokounmpo.

At 7-foot-3 with a 9-9 standing reach, Mara makes big people look average. Mara has elite size for the position, and he’d be one of the top shot-blockers in the NBA from the jump. He got tougher at Michigan and also showed additional defensive versatility, along with his unique feel as a top-of-the-key playmaker who can make reads in DHOs. That would be especially key in this Golden State offense, where he could set road-grating screens for Steph Curry and give Steve Kerr a much-needed changeup against the big fellas that litter the West.

Morez Johnson is a problem-solver on both ends of the floor. The 6-foot-9, 250-pound forward is enormous, athletic and a dirty-work menace. The NBA craves physical thumpers who can fly up and down the floor in transition. Johnson embodies all of that, and there’s burgeoning skill on the table here. Johnson’s unselfish brand of basketball would fit right in with an OKC roster that could use another enforcer and more size.

Lendeborg plays Miami basketball because he’s so unselfish offensively and defensively. The 6-foot-9 wing has a 7-foot-4 wingspan and would walk into the facility ready to sop up huge minutes. His slashing, offensive rebounding, secondary creation and 3-point shooting would help Miami’s offense. His raw size, versatility and mobility would help the Heat’s defense from the jump, especially paired with another game-wrecker like Bam Adebayo.

Steinbach is a tractor-trailer just barreling down the paint. He’s right up there with Houston’s Chris Cenac, Arizona’s Tobe Awaka and Duke’s Cameron Boozer as the top rebounder in this entire class. Steinbach doesn’t just have good hands. He has great paws. He catches anything and everything. That should earn him some grace with this Charlotte coaching staff because he will help the Hornets win the shot-volume game. Steinbach has some holes in his game. He’s not a great defender in space and he’s a limited rim protector, but the interior finishing and rebounding is so valuable.

After taking Caleb Wilson to join a core that includes Josh Giddey, Matas Buzelis and Noa Essengue, the Bulls’ dire need for shooting leads me back to Cameron Carr well. The rail-thin, 6-foot-5 guard needs to pack on muscle, but he’s got explosive bounce and a slick jumper. He’d fit right in with the Bulls’ desire to play fast. Processing and feel for the game remain serious questions, though. Ironically, Zach LaVine could be a high-end comparison for Carr.

Cameron Boozer gives Memphis the best big man in the class and Christian Anderson III would give the Grizzlies the best sniper in the draft. Anderson would only be additive for this Memphis offense. The mechanics on his jump shot are teach-tape stuff. Shooting 41% from downtown was not an irregularity. Anderson can make reads in pick-and-rolls or pivot to a floor-spacing sharpshooter when it’s time for Boozer to handle the rock. The size and inability to pressure the rim are slight drawbacks, but Zach Edey and Boozer would set huge screens for Anderson or shield shot-blockers from the tin with Gortat screens. This could really work in Memphis.

I’ve been pushing Swain to OKC since after the NBA Draft Combine. If it ain’t broke… He’s just built to thrive in the drive-and-kick basketball that OKC plays. Swain is a slippery, creative driver with a plethora of counters in his bag to get to the cup. Nearly 60% of his shots this past season at Texas came at the rim, and Swain shot a promising 63% at the rim, per Synergy. Swain doubles as one of the better passing wings in this class, and it’s easy to see him scaling down to fill a role for the Thunder. Swain was a defense-first option at Xavier before turning into a primary fulcrum at Texas. If defense is what’s required to carve out minutes, Swain will be able to buy into that. The jumper may not ever be a major strength, but Swain’s jumbo creation is hard to pass up at this slot, especially for a Thunder roster that loves to accumulate as much skilled size as possible.

Graves is an intriguing role player bet for a Charlotte front office that needs to add more depth to its frontcourt. Graves projects as a 4, even though he was at his best as a small-ball 5 for Santa Clara last season. His feel for the game is remarkably high. Graves’ passing is probably his best asset, although many front offices will be enamored by his high stock (steals + blocks) numbers. Betting on forwards who may be able to pass, dribble, shoot and defend is a gamble many are willing to make, but I wonder how long it will take for Graves to become a real difference-maker for a good NBA team. He was a healthy redshirt at Santa Clara in 2024-25 for a reason.

Toronto rated near the bottom of the league in 3-point rate, and Stirtz would help flip that a tad. The Iowa product is one of the top net-shredders in the draft. Stirtz’s moonballs can nearly touch the rafters before tickling the twine. Stirtz drained 92 treys at a 36% clip this past season on an exceptionally tough shot diet. Oh, and the dude can run a pick-and-roll in his sleep. Stirtz would provide the Raptors with another on-ball threat who can still provide value as an off-ball spacer when it’s time for Scottie Barnes to initiate the offense. Stirtz isn’t brimming with burst, but the jumper provides plenty of high-floor outcomes.

Victor Wembanyama is the unanimous Defensive Player of the Year, and the Spurs could scoop up arguably the best defensive prospect in this class. Quaintance has Defensive Player of the Year upside, too. As a 17-year-old freshman at Arizona State, Quaintance was a maven on the perimeter, blocking 3-pointers left and right and turning the water off at the rim. The knee issues are scary, but San Antonio’s defense would be ludicrous with Quaintance and Wembanyama patrolling the paint together.

This is a choice between Philon or Stanford’s Ebuka Okorie. I lean Philon, although it’s a lot closer than one might initially think. Philon is just so good at basketball. Philon slithers to his spots at will, and there’s not much you can do to stop it. The Alabama guard showed vast improvement with his pull-up jumper and proved he can get buckets in his sleep. He was one of the most dangerous isolation bucket-getters in all of college basketball last season, making even the most mobile defensive bigs so uncomfortable with his barrage of in-and-out dribbles to set up a stepback J or a knockdown floater. The challenge will be finding ways to blend all the delightful role-player traits that he showcased as a freshman back into his game. Philon has more in the tank defensively. He has more in the tank as a connect-the-dots role player who can smash advantages created by a true alpha guard … like Cade Cunningham.

The Sixers are going to play with a ton of pace when Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe are on the floor together. That meshes almost flawlessly with what Peat needs to thrive. The much-maligned Arizona product can impact winning as a connector who can make reads in the open floor. Peat running stride-for-stride with burners like Edgecombe and Maxey is a scary proposition and eases the runway into the league. Scoring in the halfcourt is going to be a challenge for Peat, who relies heavily on brawn and power to go through defenders, but he may not be asked to do that too often if he’s next to an All-Star like Joel Embiid, who could accentuate Peat’s cutting and play-finishing. Peat’s situation will be an important variable while he fixes his out-of-sync jumper. The Philadelphia situation certainly makes a lot of sense, and again, fit is everything for most Klutch representatives.

Veesaar is all of 7-feet, and he has plenty of skill in his bag. For all intents and purposes, Veesaar is hands-down the top stretch big on the board. The UNC big man drilled 40 3-pointers last season. No other 7-footer in this class can match that feat. The passing is an asset, and Veesaar will be a high-energy offensive rebounder for his entire career. He’s got some snarl as well, especially when he ditches the pick-and-pops for a thunderous roll down the middle of the lane.

Lopez possesses a powerful, yoked frame and projects as a big-bodied forward who can, in theory, be a 3-and-D threat. Both the jumper and the defense are a work in progress, but the good thing for the Knicks is that they have time to wait to see if the potential can turn into production. New York would be a strong landing spot because Lopez wouldn’t be overextended.

The Lakers need to add some venom to their frontcourt, and Reed has the chops to handle a heavy workload. The 6-foot-10, 263-pound center is a space-eater in the paint, who can carve out room to operate like it’s nothing. Reed was asked to do a ton of jobs for UConn’s layered offense. He can play in DHOs, get in and out of pick-and-rolls and create advantages with bouldering screens. He’s a voracious rebounder in his own right, and the improvement with his frame is noticeable. If he could handle Dan Hurley’s advanced playbook, there’s a good chance he could execute what JJ Redick requires. What a life it’d be to be Luka Dončić’s pick-and-roll partner.

Think of the speed that Denver could add to the holster by drafting Okorie. The Stanford product has ridiculous end-to-end velocity, and he can stop on a dime to send defenders careening into the abyss. Okorie shot over 35% from 3-point range on high volume, but his ability to knife to the rim over and over again while playing clean basketball can feed families. Okorie is a little on the smaller end, measuring under 6-foot-2 without shoes at the NBA Draft Combine, but his 6-7.75 wingspan gives him a needed escape valve to finish over the trees. He’d provide a much-needed changeup to this Denver offense.

Cenac is raw but toolsy. The Houston big man has a 7-foot-5 wingspan and was one of the best per-minute rebounders in the country. He gobbles up boards outside of his zip code time and time again. Cenac’s decision-making is still a major work in progress and the speed of the college game seemed too much for him on some nights, but the former five-star recruit projects to be a long-term piece with the rebounding and shooting potential at the forefront of the evaluation.

If this is how the board shakes out, Minnesota could simply view Meleek Thomas as the highest-upside swing on the board. The Wolves would be adding a shot-making young guard with positional size, who just needs time to round out the rough edges of his game. Thomas is going to be instant offense. He can get it going as a movement shooter or as a wiggly on-ball scorer in a jiffy, but the defense was not anything to write home about last season. With Donte DiVincenzo on the mend and Bones Hyland hitting unrestricted free agency, Minnesota has room for backcourt reinforcements. Thomas could outplay his draft slot if he can become a true point guard, but he seems destined for a bucket-getting sixth man.

Jefferson is one of the top processors in this draft. The 6-foot-9 burly forward is pound-for-pound as good a passer as anybody, and Jefferson’s jumper has improved every single season. Jefferson isn’t some jump-off-the-tape athlete, but the basketball IQ, passing and defense form a connective tissue that all good teams have. Jefferson won at Saint Mary’s and won at Iowa State and will likely contribute to winning in the NBA.

Big shooters are always coveted, especially for a Dallas braintrust that needs to make life easier for Cooper Flagg. Evans provides that 6-foot-6, 180-pound movement shooter who could fill some of Klay Thompson’s minutes in the not-so-distant future. Evans rounded out the rough edges of his game, showcasing an ability to curl off pindowns, get downhill and finish with authority. He also took noticeable strides on the defensive end of the floor. There will be some creation questions with Evans, and his frame still needs to fill out to survive the avalanche of big, strong, fast athletes. But still, there’s plenty of room at the inn for a 6-foot-6 shooter of this ilk.