2026 NBA draft thread

[hakeemfaan]

But everyone agrees he made significant progress with his body this year, and as a defender. 

He just didn't shoot well, that's it. 

And when you watch him move with the ball, at that size...it's just sooooo natural and smooth. He looks better with the ball in his hands right now than Flagg did at the end of last season, imo. That's not meant as a criticism of Flagg, but as a strong point for Ament. 

There's a legit chance he's the steal of the draft, imo, as in "why wasn't he on that top tier of guys?"

I get it, on a micro and macro level, the ball didn't go in. The results weren't there, and that's how teams trick themselves. But, I feel like the measurables are less deceiving with him than they are with other players. I'd be more excited for Ament than I would be for Carr, for example. I think he might be fool's gold. 

I can get behind the idea that it's a bad idea north of a certain number to take a risk like Ament, but if our new talent evaluators (and May) are SURE he's the real deal...I can see it. 

I'm still hoping for Brown Jr, but I'd give this an open mind. 

Ironically, if those same talent evaluators and May were sure Mara was the real deal, my reaction would be never to trust anything they think again, so what the hell do I know?

He didn’t shoot well from the 2, 3 or up close. Not sure what else is there. 

The FT % is good. The form is is good. I hear he shot well in HS and had a late growth spurt.  So I see the hope.

I just feel he has a much longer road to becoming a solid contributor let alone a star than his FT numbers and form indicate. His bread and butter move was jumping softly into folks and getting a friendly whistle. 

However if the Mavs draft him, as mentioned, I can see the allure.