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Keaton Wagler is one of the many talented guards in the 2026 NBA Draft class.<\/p>\n
NEW YORK \u2014 Few handshakes are more enjoyable, life-changing and bring a greater sense of relief than the dozens exchanged between the NBA commissioner and those taken in the first round of the draft.<\/p>\n
In an instant, those incoming players become millionaires and are a step closer to achieving their dreams. It\u2019s an annual event every late June, and Tuesday won\u2019t be any different. If the pre-draft projections ring true, the class of 2026 will not only populate the league for a decade or longer, but also produce several star players and maybe a generational talent as well.<\/p>\n
AJ Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer, Darryn Peterson and Caleb Wilson bring the most credentials and could be the first four players taken in some order, with Dybantsa clearly one of the focuses of the Washington Wizards, who hold the top pick.<\/p>\n
Who\u2019s the best scorer?
How about most competitive? <\/p>\n
2026 NBA Draft prospects Cameron Boozer, AJ Dybantsa & Darryn Peterson answer! \ud83d\udc40 pic.twitter.com\/yML1dLOtAp<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 NBA (@NBA) June 22, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n But several years from now or sooner, the best player to emerge could be Darius Acuff Jr.<\/a> or someone else \u2014 a swell of guards will certainly impact their teams, given the depth of that position in this draft, next season and beyond.<\/p>\n Trades and unexpected decisions could cause a shakeup, either minor or major, in the first round. This happens nearly every year as teams weigh their needs and desires right up until the last second.<\/p>\n The Wizards are now on the clock.<\/p>\n Here are some takeaways from the 2026 NBA Draft Media Circuit on Monday.<\/p>\n 1. Dusty May beats his Michigan players to the NBA<\/p>\n Who could\u2019ve predicted that the first person taken from the Michigan national championship team wasn\u2019t Yaxel Lendeborg or Morez Johnson Jr. or Aday Mara \u2014 all of whom are projected locks to go in the first round<\/a> \u2014 but the coach instead?<\/p>\n On the eve of the draft, the Dallas Mavericks, according to reports, prepared to select Dusty May to replace Jason Kidd<\/a>, making May one of the few plucked directly from the college ranks without any previous NBA experience. It\u2019s an unusual path for sure, one that has mixed results. Strangely enough, among the last to go from college to the NBA was another former Michigan coach, John Beilein, in 2019; he lasted just one year with the Cleveland Cavaliers.<\/p>\n In this instance, May\u2019s former college players are predicting he\u2019ll stay in the new job for a lot longer.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m happy for him and the opportunity he got,\u201d said Mara, a 7-4 center who developed into the draft\u2019s best big man prospect under May. \u201cWe were all shocked. It\u2019s huge. He\u2019ll be great. Just by being with him one year, he was able to show me that he had what it takes to be an NBA coach. He\u2019ll be great.\u201d<\/p>\n Although May is transitioning from college to the NBA, he\u2019s a good fit on the surface because the Mavericks are populated with young players, not much older than those he had in college. And of course, he gets to groom Cooper Flagg, the reigning Kia NBA Rookie of the Year and No. 1 pick last June.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a really good coach,\u201d said Lendeborg. \u201cHe\u2019s going to do a really good job of bringing guys together. He\u2019s going to adjust really easily. I\u2019m a big fan of his and he\u2019s destined to do a great job.\u201d<\/p>\n 2. This NBA Draft is guard heavy<\/p>\n Keep an eye on spots five through 12. That\u2019s when the guards are projected to take over the draft. That position seems thicker than usual with top talent, and there\u2019s no consensus on the order in which these guards will be selected.<\/p>\n Someone such as Mikel Brown Jr. could go six or, through not fault of his own, get selected five spots later. It\u2019s due to the competition at guard and also whether a team could roll the dice on a bigger player \u2014 such as Mara \u2014 who isn\u2019t as skilled as the surplus of guards but brings the one asset that can\u2019t be taught.<\/p>\n Anyway, Acuff, Brown, Kingston Flemings, Keaton Wagler, Brayden Burries, Labaron Philon Jr., it\u2019ll be a blur.<\/p>\n The best scouting report on these guards wasn\u2019t scripted by any one team, but came straight from the book of Flemings, a 19-year-old from Houston:<\/p>\n \u201cWe all do different things. We\u2019re great players. Darius is a great scorer, plays downhill. Keaton, a bigger guard using his physicality and strength to get to his places, plays a little slower. Mikel uses his athleticism and goes downhill to his advantage. Labaron is great one-on-one. I\u2019m more of a creator, facilitator, I keep feeding teammates, get in the paint using my speed to my advantage.<\/p>\n \u201cYou look at all the guards we all excel in different things but we all excel. Teams will be thrilled to have any one of us. And we have something else in common, we\u2019re all killers. We\u2019re not out there trying to make friends on the court. We\u2019re going out there to win.\u201d<\/p>\n “I can’t change my mindset\u2026 I still haven’t played a game in the NBA.”@KeatonW34<\/a> explains why he continues to keep a chip on his shoulder despite making it to the NBA. https:\/\/t.co\/q2aVSWMRa4<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/VnbNOtoqZC<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 NBA (@NBA) June 22, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n 3. From idols to foes<\/p>\n One of the bigger adjustments for incoming rookies is shedding their fandom and in a hurry. The players they grew up watching and mimicking and stealing from will now serve as barriers. The urge to ask those established stars for autographs, though strong, must be placed on hold.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s going to be hard once I play against Tyrese Haliburton,\u201d said Flemings, regarding the Indiana Pacers star guard. \u201cI mean, I modeled my game after his.\u201d<\/p>\n And yet, the idolization must only go so far once the floor is shared with those stars.<\/p>\n The one established player most mentioned by the incoming rookies as the player they\u2019re looking forward to competing against isn\u2019t such a surprise. That\u2019s because LeBron James is not only twice as old as most of them \u2014 if not older \u2014 but this could be the last rookie class he competes against.<\/p>\n Wagler smiled at the thought of going against another legend who\u2019s climbing in age.<\/p>\n \u201cKevin Durant,\u201d said the Illinois guard. \u201cBeing able to see him in person is going to be crazy. It\u2019d be really fun to see that and learn from it.\u201d<\/p>\n And what will he say to Durant?<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll see,\u201d he said. \u201cMaybe something, maybe not. I really don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n Boozer summed up the feeling for everyone with this:<\/p>\n \u201cLeBron Steph Curry, guys like that. I\u2019m looking forward to competing against them just for what they\u2019ve done for the game. I\u2019m really pumped for sure. These are all guys you looked up to, and it\u2019ll be a lot of fun for sure. Just pumped to play them.\u201d<\/p>\n 4. Rookies are ready to win<\/p>\n The flip side to being taken high in the draft is that, with very few exceptions, that player will join a rebuilding team that could be years away from contending.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a potentially tough transition for most of them because, by virtue of their draft status, they won in college and beyond. Boozer, for example, rarely lost a game in high school and during his one season at Duke.<\/p>\n The top four teams selecting in this draft are Washington (17-65 last season), Utah (22-60), Memphis (25-57) and Chicago (31-51). There\u2019s a chance that the Wizards, after adding Trae Young and Anthony Davis during the midst of last season, could be due for a quick reversal of fortune. Yet for the most part, these teams are still stockpiling talent.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m just prepared to come in and do what I have to do,\u201d said Peterson. \u201cWhatever that takes, I\u2019m ready.\u201d<\/p>\n Boozer said, \u201cI\u2019m not sure if that\u2019s the case, that I\u2019m going to a rebuilding team. But if it is, you\u2019ve got to attack every day just like you would if you went to a team that won a championship. It\u2019s a process. I\u2019m ready for anything.\u201d<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n Shaun Powell has covered the NBA since 1985. You can e-mail him at\u00a0spowell@nba.com<\/a>, find\u00a0his archive here<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0follow him on\u00a0X<\/a>.<\/p>\n