Mock draft 2026

Tetsujin said:
The thing about Mara for me is that he wasn’t even the second best player on his team. Part of that is because Yaxel and Morez are really good but I still don’t know why we’ve decided to start projecting every single 7’2” and above guy as a potential Wemby stopper.
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He's a pick that makes sense in the late lottery to early 20s. Someone will probably draft him higher and be disappointed, but he fills a niche and ought to be valuable within that limited context.

He may not be able to guard Wemby but that's fine -- I think you're right that the game plan for him will be to overpower him with strength. Or at least get him off-balance and frustrated. It may sound counter-intuitive, but the reason I want a player like Mara is to help out with the three-point defense. We're constantly collapsing to stop drives and wind up getting killed on the perimeter because someone is always left open. If Mara (or someone like him) can stop the free path to the basket for everyone who is not an enormous French basketball prodigy, then we at least stand a chance of scoring enough that Wemby can't beat us on his own.
 
Tetsujin said:
The thing about Mara for me is that he wasn’t even the second best player on his team. Part of that is because Yaxel and Morez are really good but I still don’t know why we’ve decided to start projecting every single 7’2” and above guy as a potential Wemby stopper.
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And the league is clearly building around Wemby, there will be no Wemby stoppers in same way there were no Shaq stoppers. It won't even be allowed to happen. However a big that can protect the paint is starting to become more and more valuable. Getting a decent all around F that shines via role might not be the get in most teams eyes. Mara definitely has talent and some mobility. Look at Edey, if he can stay healthy there is clear major value there. The Kings better consider their C position moving on because of this. If Perry and co. were in on Mara at 7, this is one of those drafts where it might end up being the best call if they can fill a position for the next decade. This isn't a freaking generational draft, there could be generational talents but they'll have to get beyond the flaws they have. Generational talents have very few flaws, this isn't it. You could have a generational scorer here or there, or a generational defensive big, or whatever but the complete package guys are in the top 4 and that's about it.
 
ESP47 said:
Cardwell would have locked Wemby up last night and barked at their bench!
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Unironically, I think Cardwell is one of the few guys that can actually have a prayer against Wemby on the perimeter. Wemby can't bump him off and he's got the athleticism to actually go defend him outside the paint. Where Chet is struggling is Wemby just bodies him once he makes his move to the rim.
 
hrdboild said:
He's a pick that makes sense in the late lottery to early 20s. Someone will probably draft him higher and be disappointed, but he fills a niche and ought to be valuable within that limited context.

He may not be able to guard Wemby but that's fine -- I think you're right that the game plan for him will be to overpower him with strength. Or at least get him off-balance and frustrated. It may sound counter-intuitive, but the reason I want a player like Mara is to help out with the three-point defense. We're constantly collapsing to stop drives and wind up getting killed on the perimeter because someone is always left open. If Mara (or someone like him) can stop the free path to the basket for everyone who is not an enormous French basketball prodigy, then we at least stand a chance of scoring enough that Wemby can't beat us on his own.
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He could also just as easily get played off the floor half the time for his inability to guard the perimeter and PnR. He would have to develop an offensive game that could punish a more perimeter oriented 5 or else he'd be at a disadvantage at one end of the floor with no advantage on the other end.

Either way, the Kings need to worry about how to bottle up average players before they can even think about making moves to go head to head with the best in the world. Lets get to the point where we can match up with Podz before we worry about Wemby.
 
ESP47 said:
He could also just as easily get played off the floor half the time for his inability to guard the perimeter and PnR. He would have to develop an offensive game that could punish a more perimeter oriented 5 or else he'd be at a disadvantage at one end of the floor with no advantage on the other end.

Either way, the Kings need to worry about how to bottle up average players before they can even think about making moves to go head to head with the best in the world. Lets get to the point where we can match up with Podz before we worry about Wemby.
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That's really dependent on who we could get at the PF position. If the other team is able to drag Mara out to the 3pt line and keep him there on defense then we're wasting him. He needs to stay home near the paint with a PF who can switch up on perimeter oriented bigs and a SF who can switch up too in the rare case that a team actually has two perimeter oriented bigs on the floor together. Mara has a wider base and more weight than Wemby so I wouldn't rule out having him check other PF/C's in the paint at least some of the time but I suspect his main utility is going to be denying guards and wings with quick first steps an easy finish once they get past the first line of defense.
 
hrdboild said:
That's really dependent on who we could get at the PF position. If the other team is able to drag Mara out to the 3pt line and keep him there on defense then we're wasting him. He needs to stay home near the paint with a PF who can switch up on perimeter oriented bigs and a SF who can switch up too in the rare case that a team actually has two perimeter oriented bigs on the floor together. Mara has a wider base and more weight than Wemby so I wouldn't rule out having him check other PF/C's in the paint at least some of the time but I suspect his main utility is going to be denying guards and wings with quick first steps an easy finish once they get past the first line of defense.
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You're stuck trying to find specific types of players to cover up your player's glaring weaknesses. We already have that with Domas and we've never found a compliment to him inside. If we could pair Caleb Wilson with Mara or Domas, we'd be alright, but unfortunately that's not happening.

The only guy in the draft with this issue that I would consider is Acuff because he could potentially be Brunson offensively. It's easier to find a few players that can hold their own on defense over a unicorn 4 that can cover up for a 5 that has limitations.
 
serbiangoat said:
I wonder if every team will now have one 7'2 to 7'4 big to battle Wemby kind of,like how they had a giant low skilled physical 7 footer to battle Shaq.
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copy cat league based on teams you have to get through if the goal is a championship and its going to be OKC and SA for the forseeable future unless one of these upcoming drafts has a franchise altering talent. big men are going to be at a premium early in the draft
 
ESP47 said:
You're stuck trying to find specific types of players to cover up your player's glaring weaknesses. We already have that with Domas and we've never found a compliment to him inside. If we could pair Caleb Wilson with Mara or Domas, we'd be alright, but unfortunately that's not happening.

The only guy in the draft with this issue that I would consider is Acuff because he could potentially be Brunson offensively. It's easier to find a few players that can hold their own on defense over a unicorn 4 that can cover up for a 5 that has limitations.
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Aday Mara had a Block % of 12.0 this past season. For comparison -- Victor Wembanyama's career average in three seasons in the NBA is 10%. In the Sacramento era, the Kings have never had a player anywhere near that level of dominant as a shot-blocker. The closest we've come is Michael Stewart in the 97-98 season who averaged 7.5% over 1700 minutes. It doesn't matter who drafts Mara, his role will be to stay near the basket on defense. I would look at it not as covering up his weakness on the perimeter but as putting a player with one elite skill in the best position to utilize that skill.
 
serbiangoat said:
I wonder if every team will now have one 7'2 to 7'4 big to battle Wemby kind of,like how they had a giant low skilled physical 7 footer to battle Shaq.
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Lets see what Chet does because if they aren't that athletic then it's likely not a smart move just for that. It was obvious the future was in some ways going to be Chet as a defender vs. Wemby as the offensive star in the eyes of the NBA dating back to high school.
 
SacTownKid said:
Well the one thing that's even clear in that video is he is nowhere near the physical force AJ is. That little hitch timing wise, that little bit less in explosion is typically the difference between these types. As the quote kind of says, haha.
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I suppose Nate would look pretty good in next years draft.
 
serbiangoat said:
I wonder if every team will now have one 7'2 to 7'4 big to battle Wemby kind of,like how they had a giant low skilled physical 7 footer to battle Shaq.
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I think that will be the first instinct but Shaq atleast played in one area on the court. A guy Wembys height but unlikely to have his speed and skills will be worthless against Wemby.

I think the league wide strategy will be to put smaller and faster players on him. Specifically guys that are good at getting their hands on the ball. Theres a reason OKC decided Caruso is the best matchup despite being a foot smaller. Best bet is taking him out of rhythm by making him not want to put the ball on the floor. Though it doesn’t appear to be effective. They have conceded that Chet and Hartenstein can’t matchup to him.
 
Tetsujin said:
https://twitter.com/x/status/2059302166729265223

How many Balkan bros does Underwood need on his roster?
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With Baby Peja returning to Illinois I doubt they have the money to grab Momcilovic as well. He's going to have a ton of suitors, with Kentucky, UCLA, and Arizona already lining up (the latter two sitting on NIL money that didn't go to Blackwell/Peat) and who knows who else throwing their name in the ring.
 
Capt. Factorial said:
With Baby Peja returning to Illinois I doubt they have the money to grab Momcilovic as well. He's going to have a ton of suitors, with Kentucky, UCLA, and Arizona already lining up (the latter two sitting on NIL money that didn't go to Blackwell/Peat) and who knows who else throwing their name in the ring.
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Peat is still undecided is he not (I have him as 100% in the draft, but technically there hasn't been one encouraging bit of news since he declared)?
 
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