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The 2026 NBA Draft lottery was always going to have half the league sitting on pins and needles. This has been considered a stacked draft class for years as top prospects A.J. Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer, and Darryn Peterson tore up the high school ranks. The group at the top looks even stronger now with breakouts from Caleb Wilson and Kingston Flemings, and the trade deadline made the stakes of the lottery even higher.
There are 10 teams trying to tank for better lottery odds to end this season. The Utah Jazz are resting their best players in the fourth quarter to try to lose games, the Washington Wizards won’t even play healthy players, and teams like the Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks feel like they’re pivoting to a rebuild after years of doing their best to compete. The trade deadline put even more pressure on the lottery. The Los Angeles Clippers can now pick as high as No. 5 overall after trading Ivica Zubac to the Indiana Pacers. The Pacers will be praying their pick lands in the top-4 so they can keep it.
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There’s big movement from our previous 2026 NBA mock draft, which featured a deeper dive into the individual prospects. Our last mock was more based off my personal board, but now that I’ve shared my board, let’s change the thought process for this mock and try to guess what NBA teams would actually do in each spot. I did one spin of the lottery order via Tankathon for this mock draft, and the results were shocking. Let’s dive in.
1. Atlanta Hawks (via Pelicans) – A.J. Dybantsa, F, BYU
I have Cameron Boozer at No. 1 and Dybantsa at No. 3 on my big board, but the NBA likely won’t see it the same way. While I have concerns about Dybantsa’s defensive instincts and limited three-point volume, there’s no doubt he’s still a monster scoring prospect with a ridiculous blend of length, strength, explosion, and flexibility. He can put pressure on the rim at will as a driver, and he’s shown awesome touch in close by making 76 percent of his shots at the rim. Dybantsa also already has a polished back-to-the-basket game that should work well in high leverage situations, and he’s…
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Publish date : 2026-02-12 13:00:00
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