2026 NBA draft thread

[Chicagojk]

I think with the guards in the 5-9 range for the Mavs need I will have Wagler first.  I just see some similarities to Kon.   They play different positions, but I could see him fitting in similarly.   

I will then have Acuff and Flemings next.  I am leaning towards having Flemings ahead due to positionally flexibility, but we will see.

Brown, Philon and Burries are next.   I am really unsure how I will rank these.  In all liklihood one of these will be the Mavs pick...unless they move up.   i would love to have one of Acuff or Flemings reach this stage too.

[Smitty]

@NoCeilingsNBA
BIG BOARD DAY.

It’s Showtime.

— The No Ceilings crew comes together to install V.7 of the team's 2026 NBA Draft BIG Board.

https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/2026-nba...g-board-v7

[mvossman]

@NoCeilingsNBA
BIG BOARD DAY.

It’s Showtime.

— The No Ceilings crew comes together to install V.7 of the team's 2026 NBA Draft BIG Board.

https://www.noceilingsnba.com/p/2026-nba...g-board-v7

Dybantsa at 3 is kind of crazy.  If this holds the Mavs could have Flemings at 8 and Burries if they fall all the way to 10.

[Smitty]

@NationMffl
Zuby Ejiofor has a workout scheduled with the Dallas Mavericks, per @SJUDave

Potential prospect for the Mavs with their late FRP or SRP.

[Chicagojk]

@NationMffl
Zuby Ejiofor has a workout scheduled with the Dallas Mavericks, per @SJUDave

Potential prospect for the Mavs with their late FRP or SRP.

From TX.   I never really viewed him as a solid NBA prospect.  Pitino player scare me too.   He plays really hard though and is very athletic.  Not sure his position.  For me, he is somewhere in the second round.    Not at 30.  STill though, I hope Dallas brings in a ton of prospects.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gf_G1lIssx4

Also I am talking about my butt some, just my original thoughts on him.

[dirkfansince1998]

From TX.   I never really viewed him as a solid NBA prospect.  Pitino player scare me too.   He plays really hard though and is very athletic.  Not sure his position.  For me, he is somewhere in the second round.    Not at 30.  STill though, I hope Dallas brings in a ton of prospects.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gf_G1lIssx4

Not exactly a vertical athlet. Strong with a low center of gravity for a big. Can move his feet better than most bigs. Already has a solid midrange jumper so it's not unreasonable to assume that he can eventually develop 3-point range.
If things work out he could be a less crazy Isaiah Stewart.

Haven't really considered non shooting bigs for the Mavs this year because they still have Gafford and Lively (potentially Cisse) but I guess things could change quickly.

[Winter]

From TX.   I never really viewed him as a solid NBA prospect.  Pitino player scare me too.   He plays really hard though and is very athletic.  Not sure his position.  For me, he is somewhere in the second round.    Not at 30.  STill though, I hope Dallas brings in a ton of prospects.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gf_G1lIssx4

Also I am talking about my butt some, just my original thoughts on him.

I'm watching video of him now playing the 5 spot. He looks like a guy you'd love to have as a small-ball center... but he's not going to space the floor much. Lots of energy though.

[ballsrchr]

His floor is a guy fighting back issues his entire career.  From that perspective he has the lowest floor of the PGs because he is the only one with significant injury concerns.

This!  We don't need to start out with a time bomb for injury concerns.  It would just be another AD.  AND...if he learns how to milk his injuries--like the diva Kawhi Leonard, and perhaps,...AD--well, we know how that goes.

[Winter]

I think I'm just going to wait until Sunday to start having a real opinion. I'm wearing myself out thinking about players that probably won't be available when we finally pick.

[DanSchwartzgan]

This!  We don't need to start out with a time bomb for injury concerns.  It would just be another AD.  AND...if he learns how to milk his injuries--like the diva Kawhi Leonard, and perhaps,...AD--well, we know how that goes.

To play devils advocate, I’m reminded that Masai took an injury concern in OG Anunoby in 2017 with the 23rd pick. That gamble paid off very nicely.  I remember wanting Dallas to get a pick in the teens to grab him and thought Cuban might given his IU background.

if Brown falls to you at say 9/10 and you feel confident he’s your guy longer term, I think you take him.  I know we all have injury fatigue right now, but win totals in 26/27 don’t matter.  Star power 3-4 years from now is the goal.

[DallasMaverick]

To play devils advocate, I’m reminded that Masai took an injury concern in OG Anunoby in 2017 with the 23rd pick. That gamble paid off very nicely.  I remember wanting Dallas to get a pick in the teens to grab him and thought Cuban might given his IU background.

if Brown falls to you at say 9/10 and you feel confident he’s your guy longer term, I think you take him.  I know we all have injury fatigue right now, but win totals in 26/27 don’t matter.  Star power 3-4 years from now is the goal.

I wonder how Laker fans are feeling about Luka’s injuries and availability right now…

[Chicagojk]

I don’t think I could get on board but moving up to mid first round for Quintance would be an interesting roll of the dice. I knew he was young but I forgot he didn’t turn 19 until July. He has been in college for two years. He is the same age as Boozer and a year younger than Caleb Wilson. He played his whole freshman year as a 17 year old .

There is risk for such a raw player who missed almost all of this year. In a weak center draft, it will be interesting to see where he falls


https://x.com/draftjunkyjames/status/205...80701?s=46

[dirkfansince1998]

I don’t think I could get on board but moving up to mid first round for Quintance would be an interesting roll of the dice.  I knew he was young but I forgot he didn’t turn 19 until July.  He has been in college for two years.  He is the same age as Boozer and a year younger than Caleb Wilson.  He played his whole freshman year as a 17 year old .

There is risk for such a raw player who missed almost all of this year.  In a weak center draft, it will be interesting to see where he falls


https://x.com/draftjunkyjames/status/205...80701?s=46

Raw is putting it mildly. About as bad of a FT shooter as you can find. Basically dunk or miss as far as his touch around the rim goes. That's just stuff that makes you borderline unplayable in the modern NBA. Would rather take a slightly worse athlet that isn't struggling with fundamentals if rim protection and rebounding are priorities for the Mavs.
Not to even mention that I am not the biggest fan of a non shooting big next to Flagg.

[ballsrchr]

To play devils advocate, I’m reminded that Masai took an injury concern in OG Anunoby in 2017 with the 23rd pick. That gamble paid off very nicely.  I remember wanting Dallas to get a pick in the teens to grab him and thought Cuban might given his IU background.

if Brown falls to you at say 9/10 and you feel confident he’s your guy longer term, I think you take him.  I know we all have injury fatigue right now, but win totals in 26/27 don’t matter.  Star power 3-4 years from now is the goal.

If he falls far enough...sure!

[Chicagojk]

Raw is putting it mildly. About as bad of a FT shooter as you can find. Basically dunk or miss as far as his touch around the rim goes. That's just stuff that makes you borderline unplayable in the modern NBA. Would rather take a slightly worse athlet that isn't struggling with fundamentals if rim protection and rebounding are priorities for the Mavs.
Not to even mention that I am not the biggest fan of a non shooting big next to Flagg.

Yeah, shooting is the big ?.  Probably right after health.   Although, he was 17 years old as a freshman.   So you could see an improvement.    The other contender for top center in the draft, Mara, shot in the 50's from free throws this year.    He was in the 30's during the year.  So he is not a marksman either.   Much better passer.  Both are good defenders.   Quintance provides much more flexibility on defense where as Mara is your typical drop center.   He will have trouble defending anyone on the perimeter.

[DanSchwartzgan]

Yeah, shooting is the big ?.  Probably right after health.   Although, he was 17 years old as a freshman.   So you could see an improvement.    The other contender for top center in the draft, Mara, shot in the 50's from free throws this year.    He was in the 30's during the year.  So he is not a marksman either.   Much better passer.  Both are good defenders.   Quintance provides much more flexibility on defense where as Mara is your typical drop center.   He will have trouble defending anyone on the perimeter.

I like Quintance as a move up pick with #30 and some asset (or use of the TPE to take on a salary).  I don't think I'd take him and Brown in the same draft from an injury concern standpoint, but long term upside is too great.  He may not be able to shoot, but I did see some self creation from beyond the FT line in several of those highlights.

[Winter]

Quaintance is a beast. He will have limited minutes this year, but he's going to leave a mark eventually.

A saw an article on Smoking Cuban about how Lendeborg might fit Ujiri's idea of a player more than others. While that website is generally a worthless rag, it is a point we might want take seriously. A Lendeborg pick would signal a need to be competitve sooner rather than later. He has certain qualities others don't have. He's a vocal leader on the court, extremely active, good on defense, good passer, and an adquate perimeter threat. I could see Ujiri taking him if the Mavs were picking between 8-10.

https://thesmokingcuban.com/mavericks-ma...raft-board

[mvossman]

Quaintance is a beast. He will have limited minutes this year, but he's going to leave a mark eventually.

A saw an article on Smoking Cuban about how Lendeborg might fit Ujiri's idea of a player more than others. While that website is generally a worthless rag, it is a point we might want take seriously. A Lendeborg pick would signal a need to be competitve sooner rather than later. He has certain qualities others don't have. He's a vocal leader on the court, extremely active, good on defense, good passer, and an adquate perimeter threat. I could see Ujiri taking him if the Mavs were picking between 8-10.

https://thesmokingcuban.com/mavericks-ma...raft-board

I would be pretty disappointed if this is how it plays out.  His upside is very limited by his age and we already have a PJ Washington on this roster.

[Winter]

I would be pretty disappointed if this is how it plays out.  His upside is very limited by his age and we already have a PJ Washington on this roster.

I'm not at all suggesting that's what Mavs should do, but I don't think we should rule it out. I'm not sure PJ is any kind of duplicate either. Lendeborg spends a lot of time on the perimeter quarterbacking plays. While he may not be the rebounder PJ is, he a good passer and assist man, and can cover all types of players on defense.

It's just hard to get my mind around someone who would be at their peak years immediately after their rookie contract.

[DanSchwartzgan]

I would be pretty disappointed if this is how it plays out.  His upside is very limited by his age and we already have a PJ Washington on this roster.

PJ is also my concern regarding Yaxel.  I see them as being similar and you already have the known quantity in place.

If you told me that some win-now team with a mid first wanted PJ and we could pick Yaxel at 9/10 and someone else in the teens, then that starts to become more interesting to me.