Draft 2026 NBA Draft Prospects Thread

Carr is thin, but 175 seems not accurate. Tennesse had him listed at 190lbs.
so or so, he definitely can jump, shoot and get to the FT line. and his 2 blocks per game are quite impressive for a guard.
 
So much talent out there this year, seems like a historic draft. I'm bummed that OKC has 4 potential picks in the 1st round. Presti will likely play his cards very shrewdly. He could just replace players 9-12 with rookies. I see some players that would be highly useful for us. Carr looks like he is already better than Cody Williams with similar measurements, he might be in JDub territory. Caleb Wilson is out of reach, but, looks like he was created in a lab to round out the Spurs lineup. Those ping pong balls need to do us one more favor.
 
Drafting a center seems to make the most sense. Castle and Harper love to lob it up. Plus, you have to expect Wemby or Kornet to be injured throughout the season, so having a third center is crucial.

Centers i’m eyeing:
Jayden Quaintance - Bam Adebayo-esque. Guards perimeter players like he’s a wing.
Hannes Steinbach - Luke Kornet-esque.
Aday Mara - Passes like Jokic
 
Of all the centers in this draft, Hannes Steinback is the most impressive so far.
 
OK Computer said:
Drafting a center seems to make the most sense. Castle and Harper love to lob it up. Plus, you have to expect Wemby or Kornet to be injured throughout the season, so having a third center is crucial.

Centers i’m eyeing:
Jayden Quaintance - Bam Adebayo-esque. Guards perimeter players like he’s a wing.
Hannes Steinbach - Luke Kornet-esque.
Aday Mara - Passes like Jokic
Click to expand...
Still need a starting quality Pf.
 
Assuming the Spurs pick is going to be somewhere in the range of 15-24 there’s going to be some interesting Forwards and Centers available.

Karim Lopez
Hannes Steinbach
Thomas Haugh
Chris Cenac (50-50 on him as he appears to be a project and not have a high feel).
Yaxel Lendeborg (even tho he’ll be nearly 24 on draft night)
Patrick Ngongba
Aday Mara
Zuby Ejiofor (could be a late riser, defensive PF who just had 8 blocks against Ole Miss).
Henri Vesaar
Dame Sarr (high risk but could be a good 3D at the SF position).
 
Boozer could put up 40 a game the rest of the year. Still just an NBA role player. Maybe a very good role player. But still just that. Someone’s gonna have a nasty realization next fall when he cant score against nba bodies.
 
STAT88 said:
Assuming the Spurs pick is going to be somewhere in the range of 15-24 there’s going to be some interesting Forwards and Centers available.

Karim Lopez
Hannes Steinbach
Thomas Haugh
Chris Cenac (50-50 on him as he appears to be a project and not have a high feel).
Yaxel Lendeborg (even tho he’ll be nearly 24 on draft night)
Patrick Ngongba
Aday Mara
Zuby Ejiofor (could be a late riser, defensive PF who just had 8 blocks against Ole Miss).
Henri Vesaar
Dame Sarr (high risk but could be a good 3D at the SF position).
Click to expand...

unfortunately and unsurprisingly… under the radar players i choose early on seem to have their stock rise too high because other people are catching on/ eventually catch on. Hannes will probably be a 10 pick by draft day. Too talented.
 
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Can’t see many GMs taking Boozers ground based game over this.

Still think it’s going to be.

1. Peterson
2. Dybansta
3. Boozer
4. Wilson

Then it’s gets interesting.
 
ginobilized said:
So much talent out there this year, seems like a historic draft. I'm bummed that OKC has 4 potential picks in the 1st round. Presti will likely play his cards very shrewdly. He could just replace players 9-12 with rookies. I see some players that would be highly useful for us. Carr looks like he is already better than Cody Williams with similar measurements, he might be in JDub territory. Caleb Wilson is out of reach, but, looks like he was created in a lab to round out the Spurs lineup. Those ping pong balls need to do us one more favor.
Click to expand...
Those "4" picks include Utah's top 8 protected, that has a snowball's chance in hell of conveying since they'll tank their asses off after the All Star break. Then you have Houston's pick, which is probably around 25-29. The third of the lot is Philly's pick, which is probably in the teens and not better than that since it's top 4 protected so it won't convey if they jump. Up to that point you have probably a very late first and and a mid first rounder without much upside beyond that, not much different from where the Spurs should pick. The real difference is the Clippers pick, my hope is the tanking will get so bad the second half of the season that they'll drop to the 8-9 range, giving them much lower odds at a top 4 pick. If they end up in that range that's a valuable asset but nowhere near the top 4, I'd settle for that. We just have to hope for some competent trades from the Clippers that allow them to leapfrog the 7 or 8 teams that will tank their asses off.

As for the top of the draft, I'm not going to invest much time investigating prospects the Spurs won't get a chance to sniff, I'll do my due diligence on Lendeborg, Steinbach and the players projected late lottery - early twenties from january onward, till then you guys will be my source.
 
Ariel said:
Those "4" picks include Utah's top 8 protected, that has a snowball's chance in hell of conveying since they'll tank their asses off after the All Star break. Then you have Houston's pick, which is probably around 25-29. The third of the lot is Philly's pick, which is probably in the teens and not better than that since it's top 4 protected so it won't convey if they jump. Up to that point you have probably a very late first and and a mid first rounder without much upside beyond that, not much different from where the Spurs should pick. The real difference is the Clippers pick, my hope is the tanking will get so bad the second half of the season that they'll drop to the 8-9 range, giving them much lower odds at a top 4 pick. If they end up in that range that's a valuable asset but nowhere near the top 4, I'd settle for that. We just have to hope for some competent trades from the Clippers that allow them to leapfrog the 7 or 8 teams that will tank their asses off.

As for the top of the draft, I'm not going to invest much time investigating prospects the Spurs won't get a chance to sniff, I'll do my due diligence on Lendeborg, Steinbach and the players projected late lottery - early twenties from january onward, till then you guys will be my source.
Click to expand...
Agree 100%.

I’m confident Utah will turn the tanking jets on in the second half of the season to secure that top 8 pick. As long as they get to the 5th or 6th worst record they should be safe from dropping to 9 and conveying the pick to OKC.

The Clippers hopefully will stack wins in the second half of the season against teams who also turn the tanking jets on (Jazz, Kings, Mavericks if/when they trade AD and Kyrie, maybe Portland if they’re smart and drop out of the play in, Wiz, Nets, Pacers). Clippers also have about $42M in expirings in Collins and Bogdanovic (team option on 26-27) which they could easily get one or two solid players for. Rumours of Lavine, Keon Ellis, other more impactful players on teams looking to shed salary.

Not concerned about any of the other OKC picks is what it is.
 
STAT88 said:

Can’t see many GMs taking Boozers ground based game over this.

Still think it’s going to be.

1. Peterson
2. Dybansta
3. Boozer
4. Wilson

Then it’s gets interesting.
Click to expand...
Two things:

he’s a legacy, dad Carlos played in the NBA. That’s an advantage.

In 22-23, when the Thompsons at 20 YO were averaging 23-24 pts, 15 yo Cam Boozer was wrecking the same competition for 35-40 points.
 
Karim Lopez would be perfect for us. But I think his stock will rise above where we pick.
 
(I don't watch college games, but at the international level, Boozer made a strong impression. He has a feel for basketball, a lot of confidence, he's a leader. You can be sure he has what it takes to be a superstar. Apart from talent, personality plays a big role. I think Dybansta is stupid, for example. Despite his superior talent, I doubt that a player like Anthony Edwards will win a title as a team leader (or Morant). With Boozer, I think it's the opposite. But well, watching only international youth games during the summer isn't necessarily the best way to form an opinion...)
 
BacktoBasics said:
Karim Lopez would be perfect for us. But I think his stock will rise above where we pick.
Click to expand...

CGD said:
I think he'll be gone by the time we pick, but would love to have him too.
Click to expand...
It’s been stated in scouting reports that defense is Karim’s weakness. It would be like having a Carter Bryant but without the defensive potential.
 
OK Computer said:
It’s been stated in scouting reports that defense is Karim’s weakness. It would be like having a Carter Bryant but without the defensive potential.
Click to expand...
Will have to watch for that. I saw him as a PF more than a wing (a Sochan replacement of sorts).
 
Steinbach and Toppin would be alright by me. I think JT could beat out Sochan, today, and has some real upside.
 
Now that the core rotation is set for at least the next season (Wemby-Fox-Castle-Harper-Champagnie-Keldon-Kornet-Vassell-Barnes) and with Carter Bryant and DJG as developmental pieces, the spurs can focus on upgrading their end of the bench as @scott keeps emphasizing. With regards to deep bench pieces, from a timing standpoint you would ideally want them to be able to step into a rotation role in 2-3 years, when core pieces either get too expensive (likely Vassell) or too old (possibly Barnes).

With potentially 75-80% of the cap accounted for for the next 10+ years in the Wemby-Castle-Harper trio if they develop appropriately, we are looking for low-usage contributors who can generate extra possessions (OREB. STL, BLK), or limit opponent possessions (DFG%)

Rules for 2nd round draft picks:
1. No negative defenders per position
2. Positive physical characteristics (height/wingspan/strength)
3. Baseline feel
4. Shooting can be taught! I feel like Sochan has really skewed a lot of peoples' opinions on this - the easiest skill to learn as players get older is still shooting. and especially at the end of the rotation in a developmental context, I'd rather take a bet on a bad shooter with good feel and defense than vice versa

With that said, 2nd rounders I'm looking at -

Instead of Bismack Biyombo, consider: Johann Gruenloh (Tankathon: 47)
Why he's undervalued: 47% FT on the season, foreign and white, scores 9 ppg
Why he's a reasonable bet: Spurs seem to want to run a defense with one central rim protector and 4 perimeter guys of various sizes who can fly around and switch across positions. Grunloh has the size (7 ft), rim protection (top 3 in the country among high major Fr-So in block percentage), instincts, and sneaky shooting upside to potentially take over for Kornet in 4 years or play next to another high-feel big if that's who the spurs choose to draft in the 1st round. He has higher feel than typical block-hunters and can move his feet better than traditional giant pivots like Mara. FT shooting is a 1 year outlier. Very good rim-runner (shooting 80% at the rim so far) would pair nicely with Spurs guards.

Instead of Harrison Ingram, consider: Dailyn Swain (Tankathon: 55)
Why he's undervalued: can't shoot the 3 after 3 years of college basketball (23% on 0.6 3PM/100); no counting stats stand out
Why he's a reasonable bet: Listed at 6'8", likely 6'10-7' wingspan and 220 with the ability to guard up or down - really good screen navigation, able to get skinny, excellent awareness; way more wiggle and legitimately excellent in the open court with his court awareness; can string together dribble sequences that you wouldn't expect for a low end draft pick at his size. Can he shoot? He's a career 82% FT shooter, so there's a chance. Ultimately, he has the size, feel, and handle to indicate a ton of upside - reminds me quite a bit of Josh Minott coming out of college; Julian Phillips is another player in this archetype who I've mentioned before, and Swain seems to be a better ballhandler, passer, and have higher feel while Phillips is more athletic (43" max vert!). Phillips is already a neutral to slight positive player by both DARKO in spite of his inability to shoot, and I'm looking for something similar from Swain. If he hits, this guy can be a huge asset in the transition game next to Harper and Castle as both a play finisher and play connector while switching 1-4 on the other end.

Instead of Jordan McLaughlin, consider: Killyan Toure (Tankathon: Not ranked)
Why he's undervalued: "Who the fuck is this? Iowa state's freshman backup point guard? He's not even a real point guard 1.2 AST:TO lol"
Why he's a reasonable bet: 3 and D guards usually don't cost a whole lot, but can deliver outsized impact relative to draft slot unless you're the Kings and draft them top 10 (Miles McBride, Keon Ellis, Jamal Shead, etc). Toure is an elite POA defender with good size built like a bulldog (6'4" in shoes, 6'9" wingspan, 205) who defends like a maniac. He's currently sitting on a 4.8% STL and this guy absolutely hounds ballhandlers. Excellent shooting upside (41% from 3, 81% FT) so far makes him an ideal 4th-5th guard. For those who think we don't need another guard, OKC currently has SGA, Dort, Wallace, Caruso, Wiggins, Joe playing regular rotation minutes with a historically good defense. With Castle Harper and Fox taking up most of the ballhandling duties, there is always room for a guy who gives you 10-15 minutes, hits some 3s, generates turnovers, makes life hell on opposing ballhandlers, and is big enough to not get taken advantage of on a switch.

These are small steps on the fringes that the spurs can take to build an OKC-style long, athletic, switchable defense one a shoestring budget with some time to develop
 
SpursBills said:
Now that the core rotation is set for at least the next season (Wemby-Fox-Castle-Harper-Champagnie-Keldon-Kornet-Vassell-Barnes) and with Carter Bryant and DJG as developmental pieces, the spurs can focus on upgrading their end of the bench as @scott keeps emphasizing. With regards to deep bench pieces, from a timing standpoint you would ideally want them to be able to step into a rotation role in 2-3 years, when core pieces either get too expensive (likely Vassell) or too old (possibly Barnes).

With potentially 75-80% of the cap accounted for for the next 10+ years in the Wemby-Castle-Harper trio if they develop appropriately, we are looking for low-usage contributors who can generate extra possessions (OREB. STL, BLK), or limit opponent possessions (DFG%)

Rules for 2nd round draft picks:
1. No negative defenders per position
2. Positive physical characteristics (height/wingspan/strength)
3. Baseline feel
4. Shooting can be taught! I feel like Sochan has really skewed a lot of peoples' opinions on this - the easiest skill to learn as players get older is still shooting. and especially at the end of the rotation in a developmental context, I'd rather take a bet on a bad shooter with good feel and defense than vice versa

With that said, 2nd rounders I'm looking at -

Instead of Bismack Biyombo, consider: Johann Gruenloh (Tankathon: 47)
Why he's undervalued: 47% FT on the season, foreign and white, scores 9 ppg
Why he's a reasonable bet: Spurs seem to want to run a defense with one central rim protector and 4 perimeter guys of various sizes who can fly around and switch across positions. Grunloh has the size (7 ft), rim protection (top 3 in the country among high major Fr-So in block percentage), instincts, and sneaky shooting upside to potentially take over for Kornet in 4 years or play next to another high-feel big if that's who the spurs choose to draft in the 1st round. He has higher feel than typical block-hunters and can move his feet better than traditional giant pivots like Mara. FT shooting is a 1 year outlier. Very good rim-runner (shooting 80% at the rim so far) would pair nicely with Spurs guards.

Instead of Harrison Ingram, consider: Dailyn Swain (Tankathon: 55)
Why he's undervalued: can't shoot the 3 after 3 years of college basketball (23% on 0.6 3PM/100); no counting stats stand out
Why he's a reasonable bet: Listed at 6'8", likely 6'10-7' wingspan and 220 with the ability to guard up or down - really good screen navigation, able to get skinny, excellent awareness; way more wiggle and legitimately excellent in the open court with his court awareness; can string together dribble sequences that you wouldn't expect for a low end draft pick at his size. Can he shoot? He's a career 82% FT shooter, so there's a chance. Ultimately, he has the size, feel, and handle to indicate a ton of upside - reminds me quite a bit of Josh Minott coming out of college; Julian Phillips is another player in this archetype who I've mentioned before, and Swain seems to be a better ballhandler, passer, and have higher feel while Phillips is more athletic (43" max vert!). Phillips is already a neutral to slight positive player by both DARKO in spite of his inability to shoot, and I'm looking for something similar from Swain. If he hits, this guy can be a huge asset in the transition game next to Harper and Castle as both a play finisher and play connector while switching 1-4 on the other end.

Instead of Jordan McLaughlin, consider: Killyan Toure (Tankathon: Not ranked)
Why he's undervalued: "Who the fuck is this? Iowa state's freshman backup point guard? He's not even a real point guard 1.2 AST:TO lol"
Why he's a reasonable bet: 3 and D guards usually don't cost a whole lot, but can deliver outsized impact relative to draft slot unless you're the Kings and draft them top 10 (Miles McBride, Keon Ellis, Jamal Shead, etc). Toure is an elite POA defender with good size built like a bulldog (6'4" in shoes, 6'9" wingspan, 205) who defends like a maniac. He's currently sitting on a 4.8% STL and this guy absolutely hounds ballhandlers. Excellent shooting upside (41% from 3, 81% FT) so far makes him an ideal 4th-5th guard. For those who think we don't need another guard, OKC currently has SGA, Dort, Wallace, Caruso, Wiggins, Joe playing regular rotation minutes with a historically good defense. With Castle Harper and Fox taking up most of the ballhandling duties, there is always room for a guy who gives you 10-15 minutes, hits some 3s, generates turnovers, makes life hell on opposing ballhandlers, and is big enough to not get taken advantage of on a switch.

These are small steps on the fringes that the spurs can take to build an OKC-style long, athletic, switchable defense one a shoestring budget with some time to develop
Click to expand...
But why assume our 1st rd pick won’t be that deep bench piece? With DJG and Carter likely ahead of him, he would likely be a 2-3 year project just as you’re describing in this post.
 
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