AJ Dybantsa Is the Favorite to Go No. 1 in the 2026 NBA Draft. The Generational Class Is Here.
The 2026 NBA Draft is finally close enough to take seriously, and the No. 1 pick race has a clear leader.
AJ Dybantsa, the BYU freshman who has been the No. 1 prospect in his class since high school, is the runaway favorite to go first overall when the Dallas Mavericks (assuming they hold the pick after the lottery) or whoever ends up at the top of the board makes their selection on June 25. That is according to virtually every mock draft, every scouting director, and every NBA executive who has watched him play.
Dybantsa is the kind of prospect who comes along once every few years. He is a 6-foot-9 wing with point guard skills, elite scoring instincts, and the kind of two-way potential that translates immediately to the modern NBA. He averaged 23.8 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game at BYU as a freshman, leading the Cougars to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in years and looking like the best player in college basketball most nights.
The top of the 2026 draft is what scouts have been calling generational, especially the top four. After Dybantsa, the order is widely expected to go Darryn Peterson (Kansas), Cameron Boozer (Duke), and Caleb Wilson (North Carolina), with all four projected as future All-Stars at the NBA level. That is a draft class that can reshape three or four franchises in one night.
Peterson, the Kansas freshman point guard, is the consensus second-best prospect. He is a 6-5 lead guard with elite playmaking and a developing jumper. The comparisons to a young Cade Cunningham are everywhere, and they are not entirely unfair. He is the kind of player who can run an offense from day one in the league.
Boozer is the most polished offensive player in the class. The Duke big man, son of two-time NBA All-Star Carlos Boozer, is essentially NBA-ready as a scorer and rebounder. The question on him is the defensive ceiling. He projects as a high-end starting power forward but probably not a true superstar.
Wilson at North Carolina is the most divisive prospect. Some scouts love his combination of size and shooting touch. Others worry about his motor and athleticism at the next level. He has a real chance to be a high-end starter and at least a small chance to be a star, which is why he keeps coming off the board in the top five.
Beyond the top four, the draft has serious depth. Several international prospects, including French wing Noa Essengue and German point guard Tristan da Silva’s younger brother, are projected in the lottery. The college pool includes Cal forward Wesley Yates, Auburn shooting guard Tahaad Pettiford, and Connecticut forward Liam McNeeley.
The 2026 lottery class is what made trading future picks during the 2025-26 season such a tricky proposition. Teams that gave up first-rounders to make win-now moves are watching the draft and realizing they handed over real assets. The teams that tanked or rebuilt are sitting on lottery odds and watching prospects who could change their franchise.
The lottery itself is set for June 24, the night before the draft. The Brooklyn Nets, the Washington Wizards, and a few of the other bottom-feeding teams from this past season have the best odds at landing Dybantsa or one of the other top three picks. The Nets in particular have leveraged years of strategic losing into a pick portfolio that could net them two top-10 selections.
Dybantsa is reportedly ready for the NBA spotlight. He grew up in Massachusetts as a kid who watched Paul Pierce highlights on repeat. He went the prep school route, then the BYU route, and now he is on the verge of being the face of the next era of basketball.
BYU has not had a top-three NBA Draft pick in school history. The Cougars program got a head start by landing Dybantsa, and it paid off in NCAA Tournament wins and exposure they could not have bought any other way. Mark Pope’s program is going to look very different next year without him, but the trail he leaves behind will help BYU recruit at a level they never could before.
The 2026 NBA Draft is going to be loud. AJ Dybantsa is going to be the loudest name. June 25 in Brooklyn cannot come fast enough.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
