2026 NBA draft thread

[Chicagojk]

Duke and Boozer getting their butt handed to them by #16 Siena.

They've been down by double digits for much of the 1st half. Boozer is barely average, every other Duke player looks petrified. Siena is playing crazy.

Boozer and Evans finally carried the team to a win. Boozer was unreal at rebounding, scrapping for everything. He lived at the foul line. He was great.

Siena played five guys the ENTIRE game. No subs.

It is an extremely small sample size, but I think the last 3-4 games Boozer has had more downs than he typically has.   I think by no surprise it is because their center has been out and Boozer has been playing more center.   On defense, he is just going to struggle when he is the main rim protector.  It is not his role.  On offense, his computer brain works better with a big.  He will kill one on one coverage, but pick you a part if you try to run an extra defender at him.  Either to an open three pointer or to a big at the rim.    That has been missing with their big out.

Boozer's brother has put together some nice games.   He should probably go back to school, but he has a pretty bright future too.  Big, physical guard.  With some development (only 18), he is going to be a solid pro in time.   

I also think Sarr really shined on defense.  His defense is way ahead of his offfense and he should come back.  Although, he would be an interesting redshirt guy if he does come out.

[Chicagojk]

May not enter the draft. Could probably make some good money in college next year. I like Tanner though. Smaller than the other guard prospects but a blur. More of a scorer than Nembhard.

https://x.com/brhoops/status/2034744584526524572?s=61

[Scott41theMavs]

Dybantsa's team may not have much longer to showcase him for the draft. Down six to Texas in the second half.

[Dirknows]

Dybantsa's team may not have much longer to showcase him for the draft. Down six to Texas in the second half.

I mean the team is literally just Dybantsa…

[Scott41theMavs]

Pels win again. No chance of "catching" them with a better record as long as they stay healthy. Good times.

[Chicagojk]

First time watching a game with Wagler. I like him. He does a lot of the little things. Engaged on defense. Passes the ball. Doesn’t have as many wow plays as the other guards. Illinois has a unique offense with a spread floor. A lot of Wagler’s assists comes off passes for three. Typically without deep penetrations.

[Dirknows]

First time watching a game with Wagler.  I like him.  He does a lot of the little things. Engaged on defense.  Passes the ball. Doesn’t have as many wow plays as the other guards.  Illinois has a unique offense with a spread floor.  A lot of Wagler’s assists comes off passes for three.  Typically without deep penetrations.

His lack of explosiveness is concerning a bit, especially since he will be up against NBA athletes. If the goal is to have him become a full time point guard, I really worry about him defending guards with elite burst. Offensively he’s got a good shot and good vision. He may have more untapped potential than others as he had a late growth spurt and was not a highly regarding recruit.

[Chicagojk]

His lack of explosiveness is concerning a bit, especially since he will be up against NBA athletes. If the goal is to have him become a full time point guard, I really worry about him defending guards with elite burst. Offensively he’s got a good shot and good vision. He may have more untapped potential than others as he had a late growth spurt and was not a highly regarding recruit.

Is his defense not suppose to be good?  I am asking, I don't know.   From what I saw, he looked engaged.   He looks to play good help defense and doesn't get lost.  His wingspan also looks like it will be advantageous.    I understand there may be an issue with steals and blocks but that could be the Illinois system.

I really want to see him play against a really fast group of guards....maybe even draftable guards.   The penetration on offense is what concerns me.  He made a few plays last night and they looked good.   It just I don't think Penn has many pro players on their roster.   

His shot does look beautiful though.

[vfromlmf]

Wagler can play defense but he's not your point-of-attack dog. I think he'll be a great NBA player.

I know it's probably impossible for the Mavs to pick 5th but it would be interesting to see which guard the Mavs would pick if they could go with any of them. The guards at the top all look like they'll be very good, but very different players. In a sense, Wagler is almost the opposite of Acuff.

Wagler -- tall and skinny, plays on/off ball, style is "crafty / high IQ," average defender, plays slow

Acuff - short and strong, ball dominant, style is "apex predator," poor defender, plays with force

Flemings - prototype size, plays within a rigid system, style is "elite burst and blow by," good defender, plays fast

[Nowitzki Way]

Wagler can play defense but he's not your point-of-attack dog. I think he'll be a great NBA player.

I know it's probably impossible for the Mavs to pick 5th but it would be interesting to see which guard the Mavs would pick if they could go with any of them. The guards at the top all look like they'll be very good, but very different players. In a sense, Wagler is almost the opposite of Acuff.

Wagler -- tall and skinny, plays on/off ball, style is "crafty / high IQ," average defender, plays slow

Acuff - short and strong, ball dominant, style is "apex predator," poor defender, plays with force

Flemings - prototype size, plays within a rigid system, style is "elite burst and blow by," good defender, plays fast

I just hope we get a chance to pick one of them.  Probably going to end with 6th best odds, and hope we don't get jumped by 1 or 2 teams.

Picking 8/9 in this draft feels like you probably missed on the top guys. Depends on you feel about adding Mikel Brown to this list.

[vfromlmf]

Mikel Brown Jr was the top point guard in the class coming into the season. He's been hurt, but had a healthy stretch where indeed, he looked like the top point guard in the class. I think he has the highest upside of all the guards. He has the size, skill, IQ, burst, shooting ability, defensive potential, to match the best of any of Wagler, Acuff or Flemings. The thing we haven't seen is any level of consistency. Obviously a lot of that has to do with the back injury, which is itself concerning. But the upside is immense. If Dallas picks 8th and ends up with Brown Jr I'll be thrilled.

The other guy in the mix is Burries who may not have the same upside but he was also a top-10 National recruit and has put together a great season for a very good Arizona team. And if you buy the NAW comparisons, he might be the ideal sidekick to Flagg. I'm not worried about Dallas getting a super exciting guard even if they draft 9th.

[Chicagojk]

Pels win again. No chance of "catching" them with a better record as long as they stay healthy. Good times.

Jazz won too.  Disciplinary actions to follow for the participating Jazz players.  

Ace Bailey attempted 19 threes.  And some guy named Anderrson Garcia plays 48 minutes despite a 30 point win.  35 minutes for Bez Mbeng too.

[Chicagojk]

30 plus minutes of Flemings highlights if you are interested.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NMW42Y6ztg&t=6s

I did not see him play last night and it was a blowout anyway.  I could change my opinion, but as of now I think Flemings fits the easiest of the 5-10 guards.   If he measures 6'4 he has good size.  It looks like he will continue to fill out and should be a good defender.   His speed would look awesome in Dallas.  Pairing him with Kyrie and Cooper could really be exciting.  I think it is the cleanest fit of the potential options in this range.

[loki]

30 plus minutes of Flemings highlights if you are interested.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NMW42Y6ztg&t=6s

I did not see him play last night and it was a blowout anyway.  I could change my opinion, but as of now I think Flemings fits the easiest of the 5-10 guards.   If he measures 6'4 he has good size.  It looks like he will continue to fill out and should be a good defender.   His speed would look awesome in Dallas.  Pairing him with Kyrie and Cooper could really be exciting.  I think it is the cleanest fit of the potential options in this range.

I'll be interested to see how Flemings measures out at the combine. I'm not 100% sold on him being a 2 way player in the NBA, but maybe he's closer to the 6'4" listing than I'm giving him credit for.

Unfortunately I think he's the least obtainable player in the entire draft for the Mavs. He seems to be mocked pretty consistently at #5. To get that pick the Mavs would have to somehow out-tank the Jazz for the 5th worst record, and that would only give them a 2.2% shot at staying at #5 in the lottery.

[vfromlmf]

Van Gundy just said Burries reminds him “so much of Devin Booker”.

So much for my comment about Burries lacking the upside of the other guards.

[Winter]

Burries starts the game by hitting two 3-pointers. Now 3 of 3. Now 4 of 5.

LIU looks small. This might get ugly.

[Scott41theMavs]

Jazz won too.  Disciplinary actions to follow for the participating Jazz players.  

Ace Bailey attempted 19 threes.  And some guy named Anderrson Garcia plays 48 minutes despite a 30 point win.  35 minutes for Bez Mbeng too.

Bwah-hah-hah, well-played. Kudos.

[Scott41theMavs]

Wagler can play defense but he's not your point-of-attack dog. I think he'll be a great NBA player.

I know it's probably impossible for the Mavs to pick 5th but it would be interesting to see which guard the Mavs would pick if they could go with any of them. The guards at the top all look like they'll be very good, but very different players. In a sense, Wagler is almost the opposite of Acuff.

Wagler -- tall and skinny, plays on/off ball, style is "crafty / high IQ," average defender, plays slow

Acuff - short and strong, ball dominant, style is "apex predator," poor defender, plays with force

Flemings - prototype size, plays within a rigid system, style is "elite burst and blow by," good defender, plays fast

If the Mavs finish 6th in odds, their highest likelihood is to pick 8th. Yeah, that means they won't have a shot at any of these guys unless someone above them does a poop-the-bed reach so that one of them falls. Double that if the Grizz pass them in odds. Edit: nope, I remembered wrong. There's a stronger chance that if 6th we'd pick 7th, while still 20% we fall to 8th. So we would just snatch the leftover. I'm not enamored of Wagler, but I'm slowly being won over to the idea of him being the clear 7th.

The only reason to discuss these guys comparatively is if you're of the mindset that if the Mavs move up to 3rd or 4th, they should trade down for one of these three and another asset. Most folks would say, nawr, if you're drafting 3 or 4, you have to snatch one of the blue-chippers and not look back.

[vfromlmf]

I haven’t watched much of Burries before today but he looks every bit as good as any of the others guards in our range. Again, a different TYPE of guard but elite in his own way.

[Winter]

I haven’t watched much of Burries before today but he looks every bit as good as any of the others guards in our range. Again, a different TYPE of guard but elite in his own way.

Agreed. If he was featured, he would be scoring 22 ppg. But Peat and Krivas take up a lot of space. Neither of them look as good as he does though.

I felt the same way about Mullins. If these guys had the ball in their hands more often it would be easier to get a read on thier draft staus.