2026 NBA Mock Draft: Cameron Boozer goes to Jazz at No. 2, Clippers like Mikel Brown for fifth pick
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- AJ Dybantsa projected No. 1 to the Washington Wizards — 6'9" SF from BYU averaged 25.5 PPG and became just the fourth freshman to lead NCAA Division I in scoring; the author argues he is a "franchise-altering talent" the Wizards haven't drafted since Bradley Beal in 2012
- Cameron Boozer projected No. 2 to the Utah Jazz — 6'8" PF from Duke was unanimous Player of the Year (22.5 PPG, 10.2 RPG); advanced analytics models suggest he should go No. 1 overall, and his workout with the Jazz about a week ago "apparently went very well"
- Darryn Peterson projected No. 3 to Memphis — 6'5" PG from Kansas averaged 20.2 PPG with a 114.1 ORtg; his slip past Boozer reflects "uneven time at Kansas," though the author still sees him as a potential top-three shooting guard by 2030
- Caleb Wilson projected No. 4 to Chicago — 6'9" PF from UNC averaged 19.8 PPG and 9.4 RPG before his season was cut short by a pair of separate hand injuries; the author calls him potentially the best player in the class
- Mikel Brown Jr. projected No. 5 to the LA Clippers — 6'4" PG from Louisville was the best player on the 2025 FIBA U19 gold medal team but had a rough freshman season due to a back issue; the fifth pick is described as "largely a guessing game"
- Darius Acuff Jr. projected No. 6 to Brooklyn — 6'2" PG from Arkansas averaged 23.5 PPG and is drawing Jalen Brunson comparisons, with the author warning the Nets "may well have blown" their four first-round picks from a year ago
- A potential Giannis Antetokounmpo trade from Milwaukee "would bring real chaos into the lottery" if completed before the June 23 draft, per the author
Why it matters: Six days before the draft, the mock is a forecast rather than reporting — but the framing reveals which franchises are most desperate: the Wizards haven't landed a star-level prospect since 2012, the Bulls are still hunting the foundational piece of their rebuild, and a Giannis blockbuster could scramble the entire lottery board. The author's caveat that the Clippers' fifth pick is "largely a guessing game" signals that even the draft's most stable mocks carry real uncertainty.
