With roughly three weeks until the 2026 NBA Draft, the top of the board is coming into focus — even as the league's front offices keep everyone guessing. In his latest projection, Yahoo Sports draft analyst Kevin O'Connor laid out where the intel is pointing, and which picks could still swing wildly before draft night.
At No. 1, little has changed. O'Connor again has BYU's AJ Dybantsa headed to the Washington Wizards, calling him "the very strong favorite to be the number one pick." The logic is easy to follow given Washington's roster construction. "When you look at their roster, their needs, what Dybantsa could bring to them with his go-to scoring superstar-level potential," O'Connor said, the fit is natural — a young core that is "just missing a six-foot-nine versatile shot creator like AJ Dybantsa." He cautioned it is "not an easy choice considering the guys to come next," but expects the Wizards to land on Dybantsa.
The intrigue begins at No. 2, where O'Connor keeps Kansas guard Darryn Peterson with the Utah Jazz — while flagging that the front office is "turning over every stone." He noted the Jazz worked out a rising prospect in late May and reminded listeners that this is "a front office that once traded down from number one to number three" in the draft that produced Jayson Tatum. If Utah stays put, though, Peterson "is the most likely choice," giving the Jazz "a very long, versatile lineup."
O'Connor called Duke's Cam Boozer to the Memphis Grizzlies at No. 3 "a bit of a no-brainer selection." Addressing the common question of why Boozer is not the consensus top pick, he made his case plainly: "Boozer is just so safe, with high upside as well." At 6-foot-8 with elite shot creation and playmaking, Boozer fits what this postseason has rewarded. "What do we see in these playoffs? High effort and toughness matter, and so does high IQ. Boozer checks all of those boxes," O'Connor said, adding that pairing him with Memphis's young core left him "pretty fired up about what their future's going to look like."
The board gets murkier at No. 4, where O'Connor has North Carolina's Caleb Wilson going to the Chicago Bulls — but the real story is what Chicago is doing behind the scenes. O'Connor reported the Bulls held a group workout with four potential lottery picks, fueling questions about their intentions. "Are they trying to trade up from 15 to get another top-10 pick? Or are they looking at their options at four?" he asked. Wilson divides evaluators: some believe his elite athleticism gives him the highest ceiling in the class, while skeptics question his shooting and defensive anchor potential.
Movement looms further down, too. O'Connor identified both the Los Angeles Clippers at No. 5 and the Brooklyn Nets at No. 6 as candidates to trade down, with "teams trying to move into this five-or-six range." He linked Brooklyn to versatile forward Nate Ament and to Spanish big man Aday Mara, the 7-foot-3 center whose shot-blocking and offensive feel have drawn late-lottery interest.
The takeaway, as O'Connor stressed repeatedly, is that nothing below the top pick is settled. "There's still some time to go before the draft. Things can change," he said. With workouts ongoing and front offices probing trade markets, the 2026 draft is shaping up as one of the most fluid in years — a deep class that executives believe could yield rotation players well outside the lottery.
