Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The first round of the 2026 NBA Draft produced several teams that may regret their selections.
- Rival teams capitalized on opportunities while some franchises missed chances to address critical needs.
- The debate over missed opportunities and potential busts will shape these teams' rebuilds for years to come.
At long last, the 2026 NBA Draft is upon us. Since 2024, the NBA has decided to turn this event into a two-day ordeal, with the first and second rounds being held on back-to-back days. This gives us the luxury of reflecting on the first and second rounds separately, and also eliminates the possibility of a future three-time MVP being selected during a Taco Bell commercial.
Anyway, with the first round officially over, let's take a look at some of the biggest losers of the first day.
Washington Wizards
It is hard to poo-poo a team for using the first overall pick to select one of the best scorers college basketball has seen. After all, you need to score more points than your opponent to win games, and winning is the whole point of this all, right?
Still, it feels like the Washington Wizards didn't get the best player in the 2026 Class in AJ Dybantsa. Many viewed Darryn Peterson as the more talented player, and even if you were scared off by injury concerns, a lot of very smart people had Cameron Boozer ahead of him on their big boards as well.
I'm not mad at the Wizards for making this pick. Dybantsa will likely go down as one of the best players selected today, but he just might not be the very best one picked.
San Antonio Spurs
There is nothing inherently wrong with the San Antonio Spurs two picks from the first round, Jayden
Quaintance and Tarris Reed (although the Spurs trading up to get Reed, a player who plays a more classical low-post offensive style, was a little odd to me).
The main reason they find themselves on this list is the Oklahoma City Thunder, their greatest rival in the Western Conference, completely knocked the first round out of the park -- getting two really promising players, including one (Aday Mara) who could be used to nullify their generational big man.
Milwaukee Bucks
After trading Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat, the Milwaukee Bucks had two lottery picks (No. 10 and No. 13). Two great chances to get pieces to build around.
With the tenth overall pick, they selected Brayden Burries — a player who was expected to go in this range, but was seen as more of a win-now role player than someone who could help kickstart a rebuild.
Then, at 13, they selected Nate Ament. Ament has seen his stock rise rapidly in recent weeks, taking him from someone who supposed to go late in the first round to being a fringe top-10 pick. However, a lot of the respected draft nerds are pretty low on Ament and view him as a potential bust. They could be wrong, but they also have a lot of data backing their opinions.
Charlotte Hornets
The Charlotte Hornets entered the first round with two picks, much like the Bucks. Their primary goals should have been to add some more two-way talent around their offense-first trio (LaMelo Ball, Kon Knueppel, and Brandon Miller) and to find a potential future upgrade over their starting four man, Miles Bridges.
Instead, they got Hannes Steinbach (at No.14), who The Ringer compared to Domantas Sabonis -- a really good offensive player with some pretty well-broadcasted defensive shortcomings that make it hard to work around for very serious teams.
Then, at No. 18, they took Christian Anderson — a gifted shooter and playmaker. But again, he's small (6-foot-1) and pretty offense-centric, which doesn't further either of the goals we outlined above.
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