My Unfiltered Draft Thoughts And Biased Opinions
6/22/26
One day until the NBA Draft!!!! This is shaping up to be one of the most wild and exciting drafts in recent memory. I think we’ll see a ton of action, trades, smokescreens and a few surprise picks. We might even see a surprise starting as high as no.1 or no.2 in the draft.
Buckle up, grab some popcorn and stay tuned. I’ll have a running commentary going during the draft with analysis of each pick so check back during the draft for all the latest.
6/13/26
Huge news for college basketball as Italian 7-3 center Luigi Suigo has withdrawn from the NBA Draft and will attend Villanova next season. This news was widely expected but now that it’s official Nova fans can celebrate and we can mock Suigo as potential lottery pick in the 2027 draft.
I think he’ll step in right away and have a major impact. He’s obviously got the tremendous size but also has solid movement skills, a nice looking shot and a good feel for the game for a young big man. He’ll be one of the most interesting players to watch early next season as he adjusts to the American game.
5/26/26
With the NCAA early entry deadline tomorrow we’ve already seen a lot of big name announcements. In recent days John Blackwell, Rueben Chinyelu, Flory Bidunga, Matt Able and more have announced their withdrawal from the NBA Draft and their return to school. For the past year or two we’ve been panning the 2027 draft as being weak but over the past few months so many prospects have chosen to stay in school that I’m now feeling much, much better about next year’s draft. In fact, I’d go so far as to say I’m really excited about the 2027 draft.
Yes, the class still lacks a clear star at the top but the depth is of talent is impressive. For example, take a look at this early protection of the second round. There are plenty of names here that I’d be happy to draft in the first round of many draft classes.
5/13/26
Let’s talk about Darryn Peterson. From a pure talent standpoint he’s the most talented guy in the draft and a great choice at no.1 overall. But there’s more than just talent to consider. We all know about the weird year at Kansas and how he missed a bunch of time with cramping issues. And we all saw the body language that didn’t always look great.
Winning in the NBA (and most levels of basketball) has a lot to do with team chemistry and cohesion. Peterson, a self proclaimed “anti-social loner” comes with some orange flags around how he’ll fit in with a NBA team. If you’re a team that already has a strong culture in place and very good veteran leadership this might not be much of a concern but for a young team finding their way through a rebuild (Washington, Utah, Memphis etc.) the leadership and chemistry concerns with Peterson are significant things to monitor and consider.
Most mocks including mine have Peterson going to Utah at no.2. There’s even a chance he goes no.1 to the Wizards. But don’t be totally surprised if he slides a few spots on draft day. Some of that could have to do with these orange flags around how he would fit in to a NBA team, and some of that would be due to the awesome talents of Cameron Boozer and Caleb Wilson.
Will Peterson slide to no.4 on draft day? I don’t know. But I think it’s a real potability.
5/12/26
Measurements only mean so much but.…yeah, a few guys really helped themselves yesterday in Chicago and a few added to the question marks about their NBA prospects.
The Michigan guys were big winners. I already wrote about the amazing Morez Johnson below but Aday Mara was also a big winner and Yaxel measured well. Mara is absolutely huge, as expected, coming in at 7-3 with a 7-6 wingspan. He feels like a lottery lock at this point and is making a strong case for the top 10, with Atlanta at no.8 being a possibility.
Chris Cenac Jr. had monster numbers, with great wingspan and overall size. He had some ups and downs in his one year at Houston but it’s going to be tough for teams to pass on him late lottery. I still have bigs like Mara and Steinbach ahead of him but Cenac Jr. is right behind them.
Speaking of Steinbach, he came in with solid center size and should be one of the more mobile PF/C’s in the league from day 1.
There are no questions about the tantalizing talents of Tyler Tanner but his size is a major concern. He measured at just 5-10 3/4 barefoot although had a solid 6-4 1/4 wingspan. I’m convinced he should go back to school at cash in on the NIL money.
Two other point guards helped themselves with their measurements in Darius Acuff Jr. and Ebuka Okorie. Acuff Jr. is going to be really hard for teams to pass at 5 and 6 with the Clippers and the Nets. I know the Nets have a lot of guards but they could use a true no.1 like Acuff Jr.
5/11/26
Morez Johnson has been one of the biggest stars of the combine testing, showing elite movement skills and exceptional size. He was already no.17 on my mock draft but I feel like that could be too low. He’s drawing some Isaiah Stewart and Naz Reid comps and seems to have more upside than it first appears. Yes, he’s a role player, but he can be a really high level one who has a big impact on the game. A major stock riser.
Here’s a quick refresh on Johnson’s game:
The Pacers really messed up. In the strongest draft in recent memory how do you make a trade that risks your high lottery pick. This trade seems worse to me than the Pelicans trading for Derik Queen and giving up an unprotected 2026 pick. OK, maybe not that bad but still very bad. Over the years the Pacers front office has been outstanding…so maybe we can forgive this stupid move. But man, this one could set the team back in a big way. Ouch.
The Clippers won big but still feel like kind of a hopeless situation. Are they going to try a two-timeline approach that failed so spectacularly in Golden State? That would be spectacle to behold.
With the glut of guards in the 5-10 range of the draft it seems likely that one of two things will happen: 1) a team will reach for a big like Mara or Steinbach or 2) there will be some movement on draft day with teams trading up/down.
Speaking of teams trading up, could the OKC Thunder package their picks to move up for the player of their choice? Staying put at no.12 will still land them a really nice prospect but if they have their greedy championship hearts set on a certain player they could make a move up.
