NBA Mock Draft Roundup: How the experts see AJ Dybantsa and the top 5

The top of the 2026 NBA Draft class has been touted as historically good for months — with AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson and Cam Boozer looking like future superstars. But not everything has been static at the top.

Peterson and Boozer may have had the edge on Dybantsa as the college basketball season started, but it's looking more and more like Dybantsa could be the No. 1 pick. Caleb Wilson joined the mix as a strong No. 4 prospect with the wild card potential to break into the top three. The Wizards winning the NBA Draft lottety kep things open, as they could theoretically use any of the prospects. And Utah coming in No. 2 — with strong ties to both Dybantsa and Boozer — created another potential pivot point.

But even with all of those variables at play, there still appears to be growing consensus about how the top of the draft will shake it. We looked at five recent NBA Mock Drafts — from our own Chris Kline, Kevin Sweeney of Sports Illustrated, Kevin O'Connor of Yahoo, Sam Vecenie of The Athletic and Jeremy Woo of ESPN — to see what the experts think. All five mocks were in agreement about the Jazz at No. 2 and the Bulls at No. 4 and four of the five had the same four top picks.

NBA Mock Draft roundup for picks No. 1 - 5

The caveat here is that Kline's recent mock is explicitly what he thinks each team should do, not what they actually will do. If you go back to his mock that ran right after the withdrawal deadline, you have the same top-four as everyone else, with NCAA Tournament breakout star Keaton Wagler going No. 5 to the Clippers.

A lot can happen over the next two weeks but Dybantsa seems to be solidifying his hold on the top spot and O'Connor explained why:

"At 6-foot-9, he has a special blend of athletic tools with the way he bends, shifts, and explodes with the ball in his hands. He gets to the rim at will, cooks in the midrange, draws fouls at a high rate, and displays point-forward potential. In Washington, the pressure will be alleviated on him early in his career, now that he's teammates with veterans Trae Young and Anthony Davis. In the longer term, Dybantsa fits: Alex Sarr already looks like an effective two-way big, while guards and wings like Kyshawn George, Tre Johnson, Will Riley, and Bilal Coulibaly have all shown flashes."

If Dybantsa is off the board, the Jazz will likely take a long look at Boozer — both because he fits the roster and because his dad played six seasons and made two All-Stars teams with the Jazz. But Peterson is probably a more seamless fit and, as Kline detailed, has plenty of star upside to justify his selection:

"When Peterson is operating at full strength, he's an explosive, deceptive slasher with an elite finishing package. That he couldn't attack the rim, yet still scored so efficiently and so effortlessly on the perimeter at Kansas, speaks to his immense scoring talent. The Jazz are a sneaky threat to start winning a bunch of games next season."

Peterson going to the Jazz leaves Boozer as the obvious pick for the Grizzlies and Caleb Wilson, a potential two-way, frontcourt anchor at No. 4. Uncertainty comes in at No. 5, where the Clippers' approach is less clear and the talent begins to level up, leaving a rim protector like Aday Mara or explosive guards like Mikel Brown Jr. or Wagler as possibilities. Beyond that, things are even more wide open.

NBA Mock Draft roundup for picks No. 6 - 14

Here we see the consensus really break down. The most agreement we see for any of these picks is three mock drafts tabbing the same player, and that's only for four teams.

• Brooklyn Nets — Darius Acuff Jr.
• Sacramento Kings — Kingston Flemings
• Dallas Mavericks — Brayden Burries
• Charlotte Hornets — Morez Johnson Jr.

For the most part, we're looking at the same dozen prospects reordered, mixed and matched throughout these picks. The exceptions are Dailyn Swain, Bennett Stirtz and Hannes Steinbach who each appear only once. Two of those (Swain and Stritz) are from Kline's mock draft which, again, is based on what he thinks each team should do, not what they will do and reflects that he's a lot higher on those two players than more of the other draft experts.

The other big question is how the glut of guards after the top prospects will fall. Most big boards have Darius Acuff Jr., Keaton Wagler, Mikel Brown Jr., Kingston Flemings, Brayden Burries and Labaron Phillon Jr. clustered in some order just outside the top 4 — although a few other prospects break that up, depending on the outlet.

Of that group, Wagler seems to be getting the most buzz — going No. 5 in three of these mocks, No. 8 in another and No. 11 as his lowest slot. Three mocks have Acuff Jr. going No. 6 to the Nets, with the other two slotting him at No. 7 and No. 8. Flemings would probably be the next highest-rated — Kline has him No. 6 to the Nets, three other mocks have him at No. 7 to the Kings and O'Connor has him at No. 10 to the Bucks. Brown Jr. falls once each at No. 5, No. 7, No. 8, No. 9 and No. 10.

These guards are not interchangeable — they all present with very distinct combinations of strengths and weaknesses — and where they land may have less to do with how teams see their ultimate upside and more to do with what each team is prioritizing.

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