Mock draft 2026

QWERTYLICIOUS said:
I don't know if you've read any of my draft-related posts, or have paid enough attention to my posts to actually remember them, but I've thrown out the idea/possibility of trading down depending on the situation, even if we end up with a top 5 pick. If there is a draft to trade down in, this is that draft. The return we can get for a top 5 pick is one that can, literally, be the difference between us continuing this seemingly never-ending cycle of mediocre basketball, or us taking that next step towards becoming perennial championship contenders.
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What if we traded a franchise player for two good players we’d end up in the same cycle even two part time all stars isn’t as good as hitting one franchise player.

I think either of the guys in the top three takes us to the promise land especially AJ. Also we should be a bottom three team next year so we’ll have another top five pick to add on to this years pick
 
QWERTYLICIOUS said:
I don't know if you've read any of my draft-related posts, or have paid enough attention to my posts to actually remember them, but I've thrown out the idea/possibility of trading down depending on the situation, even if we end up with a top 5 pick. If there is a draft to trade down in, this is that draft. The return we can get for a top 5 pick is one that can, literally, be the difference between us continuing this seemingly never-ending cycle of mediocre basketball, or us taking that next step towards becoming perennial championship contenders.
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Yeah, I've seen that. The breadth at the top of the draft is what might make such a strategy useful, but in my eyes it depends on two things - who you're giving up, and what kind of assets you can get back. I'm not giving up AJ, because I think he's exactly what the team needs and has superstar ceiling. Boozer? Still not sure, might be too solid to let go. The numbers are ridiculous even if he doesn't always look the part. And conversely, I'm not moving down three spots to pick up a #18. But move down one or two spots to pick up a #7/#8? That could be tempting.
 
I’ve touched on this before, but I’m going to bring it up again: Caleb Wilson and his reputation as a game changing defender. Caleb has elite size, length, athleticism and motor. He checks every box and yet every draft nerd I’ve listened to (guys that have watched more basketball than anyone probably should/do draft coverage for a living) have said that his defense this year is best described as either ok or not very good. What gives? Is it simply the thought that his physical and mental makeup will eventually translate to success on that end? Why hasn’t it already translated? Too much offensive workload? Not his role?
 
iowamcnabb said:
I’ve touched on this before, but I’m going to bring it up again: Caleb Wilson and his reputation as a game changing defender. Caleb has elite size, length, athleticism and motor. He checks every box and yet every draft nerd I’ve listened to (guys that have watched more basketball than anyone probably should/do draft coverage for a living) have said that his defense this year is best described as either ok or not very good. What gives? Is it simply the thought that his physical and mental makeup will eventually translate to success on that end? Why hasn’t already translated? Too much offensive workload? Not his role?
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What I've seen is that he can and does make plays on the defensive end that very very few professional basketball players on the planet are capable of. The ceiling is immense. But he also has the troubling habit of coasting when he finds himself in a weak-side role and just sortof guarding nobody out there when he should be making decisive reads on where to be and (more importantly) why to be there.

Which is an age-old problem -- do you want to draft a player who is a finished product and already plays the game the way you want to see it played but is probably maxed out as only an okay athlete or do you want to draft a player who is the complete package physically and has flashes of superstardom but also has bad habits and will really need the right guidance to become that perfect player?

When I see players coasting on defense the first question is: Is it an effort problem? I don't think it is with Caleb. When he is in position to make a play he gets after it enthusiastically. Next question: Is the reaction time too slow? I also don't think this is an issue with Wilson. When he is defending on-ball he is able to mirror ballhandlers effectively, even guards. He had a sequence early in the season where he picked up full court against Kansas and just tortured Melvin Council and Elmarko Jackson with smothering pressure which resulted in a 10-second violation. If neither of those are 'yes' answers than it seems likely he just doesn't understand where to be, which is a correctable problem. Nobody is a finished product at 19 years old. The combination of the physical tools, the motor, the flashes of brilliance, the competitiveness, the desire to prove people wrong -- that all adds up to a player I would love to take a chance on developing into an elite defender.
 
hrdboild said:
Circling back to this -- I just don't think it's fair to call a player a playmaker if the principle play they are in effect "making" is sucking in a defender with a drive attempt and then passing the ball out to the shooter that defender has vacated. That's the Tic Tac Toe of basketball strategy. If you have a 50% three point shooter out there and the defense is dumb enough to leave them open multiple times a game trying to help on your drives whether or not you consistently convert them then yes, obviously, it is the right read to make and you keep making it until they wise up. But most teams don't have 50% outside shooters on the floor at all times. And most good teams are going to help off the bad shooters or better yet force you to beat them in the paint before they send a double.

To me an offense is really only working when you have more looks than the defense has counters and your players are able to deploy those looks in a manner that is unpredictable. Drive and kick is the most predictable play in the book. All respect to players who can consistently generate high percentage shots on a 5-out play where the defense is set and knows who is coming at them with the ball. Fox is one of the best in the world at it and he took this team pretty far as the lead playmaker. So in that respect I stand corrected! But ultimately, there should be more to basketball than just overwhelming physical tools. It can also be a thinking game. And I rather prefer when it is. Or better yet, why not both?
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Yeah, of course both but that would be a clear cut superstar right? haha. The reason draw and kick is so effective now is literally because they have really hampered a players ability to play physical defense though, especially on pick and roll. Is it simplistic? Yeah, but the game has been dumbed down for 20 years now. That might change and is starting to, especially in the playoffs where some of those great offensive teams don't look so great but it's still a pretty predictable game right now. Pick and roll is the key regardless. Always has been, most draw and kick is off a ball screen. If a team is rebuilding and there is a choice between someone that get a team 25 a night or 10 assists a night where most other tools are basically equal, the choice is fairly easy at that point, get the points.
 
Joshyjosh31 said:
https://twitter.com/x/status/2024535942539731009

https://twitter.com/x/status/2024563465126302096

Is brown closer to PG1 then we think
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The only real concern with Flemings should be that frame. He's not a big guy even if he's fairly tall. He's a bit slight. When he gets to the rim it's almost always going around defenders and using the backboard. He can get some big dunks on people but not being able to push to the rim and him being a mid range guard will say a lot, depending on where's he's picked, about the NBA.
 
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