2026 NBA Draft intel: Latest buzz on Wizards' No. 1 pick, trade chatter and prospects rising late
One of the most anticipated NBA Drafts ever is upon us. The 2026 pool of prospects could have numerous eventual Hall of Famers in its ranks. There will also unavoidably be busts. Nobody knows, and that's the fun of this. Sticking in the NBA is hard. Being great is incredibly difficult. And yet, this draft should prove to be one of the best in league history.
It's an exciting day for basketball.
I spoke with nearly a dozen league sources over the past five days to get a gauge on the scuttlebutt around the league as everyone braces for a historic night in Brooklyn. If you're just catching up on the 2026 NBA Draft and need a primer on the plot points that have the league's attention, we've got you covered.
Will Washington surprise and take Darryn Peterson over AJ Dybantsa?This is still a roaming curiosity, but almost every NBA source I spoke with predicted it was Dybantsa going No. 1 to the Wizards. The betting markets also overwhelmingly list Dybantsa to be No. 1 to D.C. on Tuesday night.
But if you got back four years ago, to 2022, we had an 11th-hour surprise after it seemed like the top of that draft was telegraphed. For weeks it appeared as though Orlando was going to take Jabari Smith Jr. at No. 1, then Chet Holmgren would go second to Oklahoma City and Paolo Banchero would be No. 3 to Houston. Instead, Orlando fooled everyone and took Banchero No. 1, while Smith fell to third. It would up being the right decision by the Magic.
So, a Peterson-over-Dybantsa shocker is obviously still something on the table. And Washington has done incredible amounts of diligence into looking at Peterson. I would be surprised, but not shocked, if the Wizards went with Peterson, who was the projected No. 1 pick by more people than not as recently as four months ago.
"Washington always keeps thing close to the vest, posturing and thinking they're smarter that everyone else," one Eastern Conference general manager told CBS Sports.
There could be one other twist, though: What if Utah tried to move up to No. 1 to ensure it gets Dybantsa? I spoke with Dybantsa's father, Ace, on Tuesday morning and he told me: "I don't know where it's going to be, but AJ is going No. 1." He added, "He doesn't care where he goes, he just wants Adam Silver to say his name first at 8:08 p.m. tonight."
If the draft order is anything other than Dybantsa, then Peterson, then Boozer, the stories that emerge soon thereafter will be fun to dissect. I still think Boozer going second to Utah is very possible, and four NBA executives I spoke with said they'd go Boozer at No. 2 as well, with two of them predicting that's exactly what Utah will do.
Caleb Wilson to Chicago is the lock of the 2026 DraftFor as big of a favorite as Dybantsa-to-Washington is, Wilson going to the Bulls is even more of a sure thing. The one-and-done UNC product could ultimately prove to have the best NBA career of anyone in this draft. Great athlete, great mindset, excellent teammate. The fact the Bulls have the fourth pick and should be getting someone with the sky-high upside like Wilson speaks to how great this draft is. It's why the draft really begins with the Clippers at No. 5; no one knows what will happen there.
There are five one-and-done point/lead guards who will be taken somewhere between No. 5 and No. 12 (if not No. 10): Darius Acuff Jr., Mikel Brown Jr., Brayden Burries, Kingston Flemings and Keaton Wagler.
I polled a variety of NBA scouts and general managers and asked them to rank out the prospects from best to worst. Acuff, Brown and Wagler all received first-place votes, while Acuff, Brown, Burries and Flemings all received bottom-place votes. The strength of the 2026 draft isn't just because of the top four picks; it's with these next five guards, all of whom are capable of growing into All-Stars down the road. All of them won't, but all of them can.
"All of them are really good," one Western Conference executive said. "Every team, if you went 1-30, everyone would have a different order. There's not going to be this great consensus because it's going to be what kind of player you like? Do you want the speed, the size, the shooting?"
In NBA circles, the slight edge on prediction is that the Clippers will take Wagler with the fifth pick. He's got a great story: from unknown prospect to one-and-doner after just a year at Illinois, including a Final Four run.
2026 NBA Draft Roundtable: Best lead guard in the class? Second round sleepers? Our experts weigh in
Cameron Salerno
Based on the people I surveyed, these three are viewed as the most active (and I'm not including Milwaukee and Miami, as they were always at the top of the list due to the Giannis trade stakes). Hard to see the Clippers actually moving down from No. 5, but they've definitely made calls. I have Mikel Brown Jr. mocked to LA.
Atlanta has worked out seemingly a hundred prospects over the past month-plus. Two sources described the Hawks as ultra active on the phones as of late. But given the talent with all of those guards, they won't move. I can't see it. (I also wonder if they draft Aday Mara at No. 8). As for the Thunder, it's widely believed that Sam Presti will not draft and keep two rookies at picks 12 and 17. The roster is already loaded, even after trading away Aaron Wiggins earlier in the week. Will a team do OKC a solid and take one of those picks off their hands?
Nate Ament to the Bucks?The 19-year-old who averaged 16.7 points and 6.3 rebounds in 35 games for Tennessee seems to be the hardest prospect to forecast to any team. The team with the highest draft slot he's worked out for is Brooklyn, which owns the sixth pick. Can't see that. Also don't see him anywhere in the top eight ... but there's been some noise around him falling outside of the top 15 that I also can't get behind.
Ament didn't have a bad year at Tennessee, he just didn't pop the way some thought he would. The problem was Ament's shooting, in addition to an ankle injury that held him back at the end of the season. With Milwaukee now owning the 10th and 13th picks, it would make plenty of sense for Milwaukee to bring in the 6-10 Ament and see if he can hit. Maybe Dallas jumps the line and takes him at No. 9, but that feels like it could be Brayden Burries out of Arizona.
Morez Johnson Jr (Michigan).: I've been told his floor is Charlotte at 14. He doesn't have the dynamic offensive upside to justify going in the top 10, but his physical nature and glue-guy attributes after being a linchpin on a national championship team have seemingly solidified his lottery status. Worked out for Brooklyn recently, but the Nets are doing everything they can to smokescreen their pick.
Christian Anderson (Texas Tech): Not projected to go in the lottery, but I wonder if Milwaukee at 13 or Charlotte at 14 take a swing on him. Was college basketball's best shooting + passing combo as a point guard last season. Has been terrific in the interview process and seems to be rising, reputation-wise, in these closing hours. I think Memphis at 16 is highly probable if he's still available. Can't see him lasting past 18 with that second Charlotte pick. Toronto (19th) and Detroit (21st) don't seem to believe he'll still be there.
Labaron Philon (Alabama): Stock is all over the place. Some teams like him, others seem to have him well into the 20s on their board. I happen to think he'll be one of the 12-or-so best players from this draft 10 years from now. Milwaukee has apparently shown a lot of interest. Could he possibly go to them at 13? If he doesn't, some think he's vulnerable to plunge into the 20s.
Koa Peat (Arizona): Sounds like the bad shooting performance at the combine has spooked every team in the top 15. I don't buy the idea he's falling to 25th or worse. There's been a lot of speculation with Philadephia at 22. I think the discussion around him has been totally overblown and he'll easily last 10 years in the NBA. Should be gone in the top 20 with room to spare, but we'll see if any of those teams in that range have the fortitude to do it.
Jayden Quaintance (Kentucky): Unfortunately for him, his stock has taken a hit. The medical is not clean and it's basically pushed him into the mid-20s, it seems. There's a chance he falls to Day 2 as a result. He didn't even play 100 minutes last season. One GM with a pick in the 20s told me, "I have no idea how good he actually is, or can be." Not an encouraging sign.
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