NBA Draft’s 60 best players in 2026 class, ranked

The 2026 NBA Draft class has been heavily anticipated for years. A trio of top prospects emerged from an early age with Cameron Boozer, Darryn Peterson, and A.J. Dybantsa each establishing themselves as potential No. 1 overall talents. Fellow freshmen Caleb Wilson, Kingston Flemings, Keaton Wagler, and Darius Acuff grew into clear-cut top-10 picks once this group entered college, and the depth of the class was bolstered by the development of several prized upperclassmen. NIL dollars would eventually thin out the available talent, but this draft still feels like it’s 25 deep with future contributors.

Almost everyone agrees that this is a very good draft class. With a weaker 2027 draft looming, now is the time for teams to find their future stars, or at least bolster their rotation for years to come.

Check out our latest NBA mock draft for how the players could come off the board on Tuesday night. Now, here’s our annual ranking of the top-60 players in the class regardless of position. The top-4 remains the same from our midseason board, but there’s plenty of movement after that. There’s more analysis on these players after the table, including where the tier breaks are for this class.

Here’s how we came up with our top-60.

Cameron Boozer is in a tier of his own

Read my case for why Boozer is clearly the top prospect in the 2026 NBA Draft.

The short version: Boozer was unanimously considered the best player in college basketball despite being one of the youngest players in the country with a July 2007 birthday. He has a remarkably complete skill set and an incredible mind for the game. When the ball hits his hands, his team gets a good shot. Don’t worry too much about his lack of vertical athleticism around the rim. He’s excellent at everything else on the floor, giving him major value as a rebounder, three-point shooter, pick-and-roll ball handler, short-roll passer, post-up scorer, and isolation driver. He’s not quite Wemby level as a prospect, but Boozer compares favorably against any American prospect to enter the draft over the last decade.

Tier 2: Future All-Stars

Why Darryn Peterson is No. 2: I thought a lack of three-point volume would be Peterson’s biggest concern entering Kansas. When it became clear he didn’t have his top burst because of bizarre injury issues, he completely remade his game as an off-ball scorer with real movement shooting utility and deep range. If his burst comes back, he should blend on- and off-ball scoring utility at an elite level. Peterson is also one of the best defenders you will ever see for a top offensive guard with disruptive hands, very good instincts as a help defender, and a high-motor. My main concern with Peterson is his lack of playmaking vision, which I think handicaps his upside enough to make him a tier below Boozer.

Why A.J. Dybantsa is No. 3: Dybantsa is an elite shot-creator with fantastic size for a wing after measuring at 6’8.5 barefoot, 217 pounds, with a 7’0.25 wingspan at the combine. He’s a special driver who gets to the rim at will in a number of ways, combining raw explosiveness with the flexibility to turn the corner and the suddenness to keep his defender off balance on the way to the hoop. He’s too big for almost anyone who can match his quickness, and too quick for almost anyone who can match his size. His passing vision looked better than expected at BYU, too. The one hole in his scoring profile is his three-point shot: his release is a tad slow and his touch feels like it’s only average from deep range. Dybantsa fell to No. 3 for me because I wonder how he’ll impact the game outside of scoring. The ideal team set up would be to have a bunch of dirty work guys around him who can also space the floor.

Caleb Wilson turned the big three into a big four: Read my deeply reported, in-depth feature on Caleb Wilson’s past, present, and future. Wilson reminds me a of skinny Zion Williamson: his quick-twitch athleticism is special, and will help him create shots at a high level in untraditional ways. If a team puts him in the middle of the floor and allows him to face-up surrounded by shooters, this should be a high-level offensive player with plus defensive value thanks to his switchability and aptitude at forcing takeaways.

Tier 3 goes from No. 5 to No. 18

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder in this range. Here’s some quick hits and links to extended coverage of my favorite prospects in this range.

Read my feature: Yaxel Lendeborg needed a miracle to end up at Michigan. Now he’s everything the NBA should want

The No. 5 spot is the toughest call on any big board in this class. I went with Yaxel Lendeborg because he’s already really good right now with the size and role malleability to translate to the highest levels of the game. I typically balk at the idea that older prospects are more “NBA ready” than younger ones who reach the league sooner, but it feels true in Yaxel’s case. He proved his versatility in his super-senior year at Michigan, showing he can shoot threes with volume, defend on the perimeter, and play alongside other bigs. He’s basically big enough to play NBA center after measuring at 6’8.75 barefoot and 241 pounds with a 7’3.25 wingspan while also being skilled enough to play on the perimeter offensively. Yeah, he’s a month older than Josh Giddey who just finished his fifth NBA season, but he’s improved in the exact ways you’d want to see out of anyone in their age-22 and age-23 seasons. It feels like he can impact playoff games from day one.

Parsing the point guards

1. Kingston Flemings (No. 6): The lack of size is significant, but Flemings is such a smart player with excellent athleticism and an ability to impact the game on both ends. He’s an explosive athlete as a driver who can change directions in a pinch, make high-level passing reads off a live dribble, and rise into his mid-range pull-up with ease. His disruptive hands and high motor make him the best defensive guard of this group in my opinion in spite of his narrow frame and lack of length. If he can turn some of his pull-up middies into pull-up threes, he should be a good starter in the league for a long time.
2. Mikel Brown Jr. (No. 7): I see Brown as a poor man’s LaMelo Ball. His pull-up three-point shooting volume is valuable even if it leads to frustrating shot selection at times, he’s a super creative passer, and he can get downhill with the explosiveness to finish above the rim. I’m worried about his durability after a bad back limited him as a freshman at Louisville, and I’m curious to see if he can add strength to a thin frame.
3. Keaton Wagler (No. 11): It’s hard to separate Wagler from his overlooked recruiting ranking at No. 150 in the freshman class entering the season. He beat the odds to become a top-10 pick when Illinois moved him to point guard and showcased his elite pull-up shooting and sound decision-making. I just worry there’s a threshold for NBA athleticism that Wagler fails to meet, which is part of why he was slept on entering the year. To my knowledge he’s the first ever one-and-done lottery pick to be at least 6’6 and finish the season with zero dunks, and he did it while playing in ideal five-out spacing. If he maintains elite pull-up shooting in the league, he can be a high-level starter or even a potential All-Star, but I feel like he doesn’t have as much margin for error as the other guards.
4. Darius Acuff (No. 12): Acuff’s season at Arkansas was legitimately incredible, but I’d want to see it over a larger sample before fully buying the hype. He was only a 30 percent three-point shooter in a 29-game sample prior to college before exploding as a 43 percent three-point shooter in 38 games with the Razorbacks. His shot profile can be a bit mid-range heavy, and his defensive projection is terrible. That said, Acuff is an awesome floor general with plus vision and pacing who proved he can score all over the floor. I’m fading him a tad — he’s still in my lottery tier so don’t get too mad — but he should be a high floor guard in the league.
5. Ebuka Okorie (No. 14): Okorie has the best first-step in the class plus the acceleration to extend his advantage all the way to the rim. I’m encouraged by his three-point shooting volume, especially with 59 percent of his makes being unassisted. His passing vision is the big question mark (other than his lack of size), but who did he really have to pass to at Stanford? I have him lotto tier, and still worry I’m too low.
6. Bennett Stirtz (No. 15): I like the Ty Jerome comp for Stirtz as a super efficient creator with a wicked jumper who can score all over the floor.
7. Labaron Philon (No. 18): Philon’s drive-and-kick game and touch from floater range are tremendous. He just doesn’t have any length or strength, and I don’t know how much utility his three-point shot will have with a lower release point.

Read: How Aday Mara played his way into the lottery of our latest NBA mock draft

There are only so many 7’3 humans in the world. I’m buying Mara as a lottery pick for his rim protection in drop coverage, his great passing ability, and his interior scoring touch. There are legit concerns about his lack of coverage versatility defensively, and I’d like him a lot more if I thought he was a good bet to shoot it eventually. Even with those flaws, Mara is a huge, high-IQ big man who should have one of the highest floors in the draft.

Morez Johnson and Hannes Steinbach are both worthy top-10 prospects

Johnson is super long (7’3.5 wingspan) and super strong (250 pounds) whether he’s playing the four or the five in the NBA, and he’s an elite athlete for his size. The sophomore has a case as one of the best defenders in this draft regardless of position, showing the ability to hold his ground inside with a low center of gravity while also having really quick feet on the perimeter. Offensively, he’s going to make an impact rolling to the basket, generating second chance opportunities on the glass, and finishing in the dunker’s spot. He’s going to be super efficient with his interior scoring chances, and he’s going to get to the line a bunch, where he’s a 78 percent foul shooter. I buy some future three-point shooting upside for Johnson, and that gives him top-10 value even if he’s not much of a ball handler or playmaker for others.

Steinbach is another combo big, and he should be really good offensively whether he’s at the four or the five. His offensive rebounding has a case for the best skill in the class. He’s relentless on the glass with a terrific nose for the ball, soft hands, and the ability to go over the top for rebounds without getting called for over-the-back. He’s awesome in transition for someone his size (6’10.25, 248 pounds, 7’2.25 wingspan), running the floor hard and having enough body control to finish from tough angles. The swing skill is his shooting, and I’m bullish on it after making 34 percent of his threes on 53 attempts and 76 percent of his free throws. His defense is the real question: he’s not stout enough to be an anchor at the five, and his mobility is okay but not great at the four. He’s probably best in a twin towers front court, but I still think he can return top-10 value in this class.

Tier 4: Intriguing with some real downside

20. Nate Ament, F, Tennessee: Ament was supposed to be a top-5 pick coming into the year, but he was way too inefficient (53.4 percent true shooting) to return that type of value. Being tasked with 27.8 percent usage on Tennessee’s cramped floor certainly didn’t do him any favors. Make him a fourth option offensively, and I still think there’s a chance he can be a tall and rangey two-way forward who spaces the floor and adds a bit of supplemental rim protection. The key to his pro career in my eyes will be taking pride in his defense.

21. Christian Anderson, G, Texas Tech: The NBA is quickly becoming no country for small guards, but Anderson is an elite pull-up shooter and crafty live dribble playmaker who could figure out a way to survive.

22. Chris Cenac, C/F, Houston: Cenac is very raw, but his physical tools are awesome with a 7’5 wingspan and a 240-pound frame, and his jumper is sweet. I compare him to Jalen Smith, who turned into a solid piece for the Bulls after two other franchises gave up on him. Committing to a hard-charging coach like Kelvin Sampson at Houston is a green flag for me. I’m not sure if he’ll hit with the team that drafts him, but bigs with tools and a jumper like Cenac usually figure it out eventually.

Tier 5: Best second round bets

30. Bruce Thornton, G, Ohio State: Thornton was an elite college guard for his last three years at Ohio State. He put up 66.5 percent true shooting this year, which is insane efficiency for anyone, but especially for a 6’2 guard who finished the year with zero dunks. He’s close to a knockdown shooter from three, and his ability to self-create from mid-range is second-to-none. It’s hard to keep him away from his spots with a strong, stocky body, and he doesn’t turn the ball over. There will be questions about Thornton’s athleticism and defense, but he was too spectacular to keep out of my first round rankings.

33. Ugonna Onyenso, C, Virginia: NBA longshots often need a special skill to stick in the league, and Onyenso has it with his rim protection. He consistently deterred Cam Boozer at the basket in the ACC tournament with his 7’5 wingspan and awesome hand-eye coordination. He probably can’t do anything on offense, and I’m a bit worried about how he’ll hold up in the pros with a high center of gravity, but the man is going to block shots in the league if given a chance.

37. Maliq Brown, C, Duke: Tough, smart, low maintenance big who should contribute on the glass and add some frontcourt defensive versatility. He can’t do anything with the ball in his hands on offense, but if his three-point shot comes around, I could see him carving out a career.

Tier 6: Seniors worth taking a chance on

41. Tamin Lipsey, G, Iowa State: Felt like college Westbrook at times as an athletic guard who filled the box score despite an erratic jump shot. His 4.4 career steal rate across four college seasons is an absurd number that shows his burst and his feel. I could see him earning an opportunity through the G League.

47. Nate Bittle, C, Oregon: Solid shotblocker with some shooting potential. He felt overmatched in a point-center role with the Ducks last season, but no one will ask him to do that in the NBA.

60. Bryce Hopkins, F, St. John’s: Big-body shotmaker who turned himself into a good defender over his college career after tearing his ACL. He provides enough floor spacing on offense and mobility on defense to earn a chance eventually.

Thanks for reading my coverage all season long. I’ll have live draft grades for every pick on Tuesday night, plus winners and losers from the draft later in the week. Watch out for my early 2027 NBA mock draft this week or next week, too. This was a wonderful cycle, and I’m already excited for next year.