2026 NBA DRAFT CLASS

[babyjax13]

Weird that with such an exciting draft class we still have more discussion here about prior drafts because people want to take laps.

[Caneman786]

The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a conference to watch for draft enthusiasts and any basketball enthusiast.

18 teams, with the top three teams all headlined by a big draft name projected in the top ten and doing exceptionally well so far, alongside a bunch of other projected top picks.

Duke University is the betting favorite to win the conference regular season, and as of the last AP Poll released on 11/24, they were ranked #4 in the country. Massey ratings (a composite of dozens of net rating systems) has them at #1, though. They are spearheaded by:

Their 6' 9" 250 pound starting power forward CAMERON BOOZER. He is a freshman out of Miami, Florida who is ultra-productive and was ranked third in his class, and he's seen as one of the "big three" prospects in the 2026 NBA draft.

Duke is currently 8-0.

The University of Louisville, a close second to win the conference. They are just behind Duke at #6 in the country in the AP poll, and Massey ratings has them #17. Both of these are #2 in the conference and their betting odds are also #2 in the conference to win the regular season. They are currently 7-0, the second undefeated team in the conference.

Their most productive player is their 6' 5" 190 pound starting point guard freshman out of Orlando, Florida named MIKEL BROWN, JR., who is projected in the top ten in the 2026 NBA draft. He is a stellar shooter and passer. He was ranked #7 in his class at the end of his senior year.

The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill is the school Michael Jordan attended and played for in the early 1980s. They were ranked #16 by the AP poll (#3 in the conference) when they were 5-0 six days ago. However, now they are 6-1 after getting blown out by #11 ranked Michigan State of the Big Ten, so they are likely to decline some. North Carolina is currently #22 on Massey Ratings, still #3 in the conference.

Their most productive player is the 6' 10" 215 pound freshman starting forward CALEB WILSON out of Atlanta, GA. He was ranked #5 in his class and is a strong scorer and rebounder noted for his killer instinct and personality. He is also projected in the top 10 of the draft, and seems in more recent iterations of mock drafts to be asserting his position as #4 right behind the big three (eclipsing Nate Ament of Tennessee, who previously held this honor).

A sleeper is NC State of Raleigh. They were ranked #23 in the country and #4 in the conference six days ago when they were 4-0, but since then they have fallen to 5-2, both losses being to unranked schools. Massey ratings has them #51 in the country and #7 in the conference now. They are likely to drop off the AP poll tomorrow. They start 4 upperclassmen and 1 sophomore without having any freshmen starters.

Southern Methodist University in Dallas County, TX has notably gone 8-0, being the third undefeated team of the conference aside Duke and Louisville. They are unranked and they are low in the betting odds, but their stock in Massey ratings has jumped to #25 in the country and #4 in the conference, just behind North Carolina. Their roster also starts 4 upperclassmen and 1 sophomore. They haven't played any ranked schools yet, but they play #24 Vanderbilt of the Southeastern Conference on Wednesday. It's sure to be their biggest battle of the season and an uphill one. However, Massey ratings still gives them a 33% shot to take home the win.

I think we're all excited to see what happens here!

[Caneman786]

Freshman basic statistic leaders in NCAA Division 1 basketball so far this season:

POINTS PER GAME

1. 23.0 PPG, 59.2% TS% - Stanford guard Ebuka Okorie (ranked #5 among all players)
2. 22.9 PPG, 66.8% TS% - Duke forward Cameron Boozer (ranked #6 among all players)
3. 20.6 PPG, 69.7% TS% - N.C. A&T forward Lewis Walker (ranked #25 among all players)
4. 19.9 PPG, 65.2% TS% - North Carolina forward Caleb Wilson (ranked #41 among all players)
5. 19.0 PPG, 60.5% TS% - BYU forward A.J. Dybantsa (ranked #63 among all players)
6. 18.6 PPG, 73.8% TS% - McNeese guard Larry Johnson (ranked #80 among all players)
7. 18.4 PPG, 59.6% TS% - Furman guard Alex Wilkins (ranked #86 among all players)
8. 18.0 PPG, 62.3% TS% - Virginia forward Thijs De Ridder (ranked #99 among all players)
9. 17.9 PPG, 55.7% TS% - Tennessee forward Nate Ament (ranked #104 among all players)
10. 17.6 PPG, 70.4% TS% - Washington state guard Ace Glass III (ranked #116 among all players)

Notable names averaging at least 15 PPG:

17.6 PPG, 54.7% TS% for Arkansas guard Meleek Thomas
17.4 PPG, 58.7% TS% for Arkansas guard Darius Acuff Jr.
17.0 PPG, 57.8% TS% for Louisville guard Mikel Brown Jr.
15.6 PPG, 57.1% TS% for Arizona forward Koa Peat
15.5 PPG, 50.3% TS% for Baylor guard Tounde Yessoufou

REBOUNDS PER GAME

1. 11.1 RPG - New Mexico forward Tomislav Buljan (ranked #6 among all players)
2. 10.0 RPG - Illinois forward David Mirkovic (ranked #21 among all players)
3. 9.9 RPG - North Carolina forward Caleb Wilson (ranked #22 among all players)
4. 9.8 RPG - Duke forward Cameron Boozer (ranked #26 among all players)
5. 9.2 RPG - Eastern Michigan forward Mohammad Habhab (ranked #33 among all players)
5. 9.2 RPG - Georgia Tech center Mouhamed Sylla (ranked #33 among all players)
7. 9.1 RPG - Fairfield forward Brandon Benjamin (ranked #37 among all players)
8. 9.0 RPG - Robert Morris forward DeSean Goode (ranked #40 among all players)
9. 8.1 RPG - Hofstra forward Victory Onuetu (ranked #74 among all players)
10. 8.0 RPG - Northeastern forward Xander Alarie (ranked #78 among all players)

Notable names averaging at least 6 RPG:

7.8 RPG for Houston center Chris Cenac Jr.
7.6 RPG for Tennessee forward Nate Ament
6.4 RPG for BYU forward AJ Dybantsa
6.0 RPG for Baylor guard Tounde Yessoufou

ASSISTS PER GAME

1. 6.1 APG, 1.69 AST-TOV ratio - Portland guard Joel Foxwell (ranked #24 among all players)
2. 6.0 APG, 2.21 AST-TOV ratio - Louisville guard Mikel Brown Jr. (ranked #26 among all players)
3. 5.6 APG, 2.60 AST-TOV ratio - Hofstra guard Preston Edmead (ranked #40 among all players)
4. 5.4 APG, 2.38 AST-TOV ratio - Toledo guard Leroy Blyden Jr. (ranked #48 among all players)
5. 5.4 APG, 1.72 AST-TOV ratio - UT Arlington guard Casmir Chavis (ranked #56 among all players)
5. 5.2 APG, 2.58 AST-TOV ratio - Villanova guard Acaden Lewis (ranked #71 among all players)
7. 5.1 APG, 3.15 AST-TOV ratio - Gonzaga guard Mario Saint-Supery (ranked #75 among all players)
8. 5.0 APG, 2.86 AST-TOV ratio - Houston guard Kingston Flemings (ranked #77 among all players)
8. 5.0 APG, 2.69 AST-TOV ratio - Washington guard JJ Mandaquit (ranked #77 among all players)
10. 4.6 APG, 2.64 AST-TOV ratio - Virginia Tech guard Neoklis Avdalas (ranked #103 among all players)

Notable names averaging at least 3.5 APG:

4.4 APG, 2.38 AST-TOV ratio for Arkansas guard Darius Acuff Jr.
3.9 APG, 3.10 AST-TOV ratio for Duke forward Cameron Boozer
3.9 APG, 3.86 AST-TOV ratio for Arkansas guard Meleek Thomas
3.5 APG, 3.50 AST-TOV ratio for Duke guard Cayden Boozer

[Chuck Everett]

What’s the take on Veesarr from UNC?

Like how he moves and how he can pass.

I like him as a second round pick. The shooting looks nice, he has some size.

I thought he looked like a future pro last year at Arizona. I know they were sad to see him go. In a league that remains starved for quality big guys, hard to see him not making a roster somewhere. Drew Eubanks and Jericho Sims are somehow still in the NBA.

[Caneman786]

Something to wonder is where Darryn Peterson will slot into these lists after he recovers from injury.

He seems to be the guy who can rival Cameron Boozer in scoring and efficiency.

It would be great if we could watch him work Tuesday against UConn.
Kansas has been rolling without him these last few games.

Massey ratings now has them at #16, between Iowa and Louisville.
If Peterson can come back and develop chemistry, they may start to become a threat in the Big 12.

[babyjax13]

How do people feel about Tiller? I like that he can stretch the court and rebound, not much creation and a bit slow. Is he fast enough to be a power forward in the NBA?

[BlazersBroncos]

How do people feel about Tiller? I like that he can stretch the court and rebound, not much creation and a bit slow. Is he fast enough to be a power forward in the NBA?

Reminds me of Tre Lyles.

[babyjax13]

How do people feel about Tiller? I like that he can stretch the court and rebound, not much creation and a bit slow. Is he fast enough to be a power forward in the NBA?

Reminds me of Tre Lyles.

I like that comp.

[Chuck Everett]

UNC has two first rounders in the frontcourt. With teams like Toronto and Boston who desperately need backup centers with size, it's hard to see Veesar not being picked in the first.

[Devilanche]

Spoiler:

So, another name I think scouts are going to get a good look at this season is Dailyn Swain, 6'8 wing for Texas. He followed Sean Miller from Xavier but he looks like a prototype 3/D player. So far this season he's filling up the stat sheet with boards and assists.

Wouldn't shock me if Sam Presti was scouting him pretty heavily during the season. Guy looks like a future pro to me.

Wasn't sure if anyone mentioned his name yet.

Historically he hasn't been able to shoot at all. If it is real this is a huge improvement and that probably moves him from the conversation of being a mid/late 2nd to a late 1st/early 2nd prospect. He reminds me a bit of Kyle Anderson.

He's starting to string together some really solid games. I expect he'll end up making all-SEC. Again, watch out for OKC here.

Spoiler:

Another guy, I think we should keep an eye on is Pharrel Payne. 6'9 250 playing for Buzz Williams at Maryland (second year as he played at A&M last year). Kind of a bruiser, very athletic, dunks everything and has gotten better every year in college. He would be perfect to play behind (and sometimes with) guys like Wemby, Chet, Mobley.

Spoiler:

Oh, and the Thunder currently have three times as many lottery picks in one of the deepest drafts in the past 20 years than they do losses on the season.

How did the rest of the NBA let them get away with this? LOL.

OKC fan here. Any interesting prospect from OKC point of view ? Preferably from the late lotto , late first , second round picks range?

Need find more players I can read up and find their highlights as the NCAA season progress .

[babyjax13]

Glad we are finally going to see Peterson in action. The Missouri game was fun. He wasn't amazing, but he was sick. You could see the effect of him on the court, though. The ball movement was really good, he occupied a lot of attention and was able to create advantages for his teammates.

[babyjax13]

Spoiler:

Historically he hasn't been able to shoot at all. If it is real this is a huge improvement and that probably moves him from the conversation of being a mid/late 2nd to a late 1st/early 2nd prospect. He reminds me a bit of Kyle Anderson.

He's starting to string together some really solid games. I expect he'll end up making all-SEC. Again, watch out for OKC here.

Spoiler:

Another guy, I think we should keep an eye on is Pharrel Payne. 6'9 250 playing for Buzz Williams at Maryland (second year as he played at A&M last year). Kind of a bruiser, very athletic, dunks everything and has gotten better every year in college. He would be perfect to play behind (and sometimes with) guys like Wemby, Chet, Mobley.

Spoiler:

Oh, and the Thunder currently have three times as many lottery picks in one of the deepest drafts in the past 20 years than they do losses on the season.

How did the rest of the NBA let them get away with this? LOL.

OKC fan here. Any interesting prospect from OKC point of view ? Preferably from the late lotto , late first , second round picks range?

Need find more players I can read up and find their highlights as the NCAA season progress .

Some possible names:

Late lotto: Cameron Carr, Dame Sarr (both feel like the kind of physical outliers OKC looks for, both have some interesting defensive tools), Jayden Quiantance (I don't really think he is as good as advertised, but he can pass and is a real rim deterrent, could be a fun fit with Chet).
Late first/second: Tomislav Ivisic (good passing center who can hit open threes), Henri Veesaar (another center who can hit threes, better shooter than Ivisic),

[babyjax13]

I am a David Mirkovic enjoyer but he might be too slow to be a forward and too small to be a center.

[babyjax13]

Taylor Bol Bowen is kind of interesting as a second round flyer. Massive wingspan, shooting over 90% from the line and his shooting has improved every year. Doesn't get assists at all. Averages a block a game and seems mobile enough to be a 3/4 even though he is 6-10?

[Greek]

Another great game from Avdalas with 30 points

[youtube] https://youtu.be/9k4JvB2-_Ww?si=RI-QbYFfo7dPvLmR [/youtube]

[JMAC3]

Another great game from Avdalas with 30 points

[youtube] https://youtu.be/9k4JvB2-_Ww?si=RI-QbYFfo7dPvLmR [/youtube]

Does it matter? It was against Western Carolina.

[JMAC3]

Hannes Steinbach seems like the type of player that could go #1 out of nowhere.

[JMAC3]

Christian Anderson might be a name to watch, always dominated in Euro stuff for Germany and now breaking out at Texas Tech this year.

[tontoz]

Not sure what to make of Neo. He's had a couple of huge scoring games but also many games where he hasn't done much.

Next month games will be televised so maybe we can get a better read on him then.

[Chokic]

Does anyone see Melvin Council Kansas guard as a nba prospect? He wasnt really on any nba scouts radar and while peterson was out hes had chance to showcase his skills has he played himself into a potential 2nd rd draft pick?