Happy Thursday, everybody. Hope all of you guys are having an incredible week. As promised, we’re going to take our first look at the 2026 NBA Draft – specifically at the top two guys, Darryn Peterson and AJ Dybantsa. Right now, those are the two players competing for that number one spot. There’s a little bit of a drop-off before you get to Cam Boozer, so I’m going to primarily focus on those two guys.
I’d like to discuss which guy I would pick first and why. I’ll do dive deep into both players and what I expect from them as pros moving forward.
Why I Lean Slightly Toward AJ Dybantsa
Coming into this process, I actually thought I would lean toward Darryn Peterson. Generally speaking, I tend to prefer bigger, stronger guards over lanky forwards. We’ve seen undersized hyper-athletic guards flame out before, and in past draft debates I’ve leaned toward size and versatility on the wing.
Peterson fits that big, athletic two-guard mold. He has a strong frame, real explosiveness, and high-level shot-making ability. On paper, that archetype is usually one I feel comfortable betting on.
But when I dug into the tape, I ended up leaning ever so slightly toward AJ Dybantsa.
There are two main reasons. First, while Peterson is an elite athlete, I don’t see him as a world-beating athlete in the mold of someone like Anthony Edwards. Edwards is on another level physically. Peterson projects as an upper-tier NBA athlete, but not quite in that rare air.
Second, Dybantsa separates himself from the typical lanky forward archetype with the way he attacks the rim. Historically, thin wings like Kevin Durant or Paul George have sometimes struggled with rim pressure early in their careers. Dybantsa doesn’t have that issue. There is a physical downhill aggression and relentlessness to his game that jumps off the screen.
I look at Dybantsa as a hybrid between a Kevin Durant or Paul George-style jump-shooting forward and a Giannis, Zion, or LeBron-type downhill attacker. To be clear, he’s not on the level of those all-time power drivers. But he has much more of that element in his game than most players his size.
That gives him a high floor. He pressures the rim consistently, rebounds, and shows real playmaking feel. If the jumper improves and he adds impact defense, I genuinely see best-player-in-the-world potential. That’s why, right now, I would take Dybantsa first and Peterson second.
AJ Dybantsa Scouting Report
Dybantsa has played 25 games this season and is averaging 24 points, seven rebounds, and four assists per game. He’s shooting 54% from the field, 36% from three, and 75% from the free throw line. He’s attempting seven shots per game at the rim and finishing 68% of them.
Those are elite numbers for a dribble-drive wing.
The defining trait in his game is his rim pressure. He uses hesitation dribbles to get defenders off balance, then explodes downhill. Even his counters are aggressive. Instead of settling for fadeaways when cut off, he frequently uses step-throughs to continue attacking the basket. That’s how he maintains such high rim volume.
He finishes above the rim with authority, but he also shows soft touch on layups and short-range attempts. As he continues to add strength and improve his understanding of NBA spacing and angles, there’s reason to believe he’ll become even more efficient inside.
As a shot creator, he’s already advanced. He’s shooting 46% on pull-up twos and 52% on short pull-ups inside 17 feet. He’s at 34% on pull-up threes and 40% on floaters. If those numbers tick up even slightly – mid-30s on pull-up threes, mid-50s on short pull-ups – we’re talking about one of the most dynamic three-level scorers in the league.
There are two areas for growth. The first is defensive consistency. He has the physical tools and competitive spirit to become an All-Defense level player, but he’s not there yet possession to possession. Even so, his tools alone give him a strong defensive baseline.
The second is elevating from a capable jump shooter to an elite one. That shift would dramatically change how he’s guarded and unlock even more of his downhill game.
Between the rim pressure, playmaking willingness, and scoring versatility, the ceiling is enormous. Even if his jumper never becomes elite, the floor still looks like a perennial All-NBA caliber player.
Darryn Peterson Scouting Report
Peterson has only played 14 games this season, averaging 20 points in 28 minutes per game. He’s shooting 48% from the field, 41% from three, and 80% from the free throw line. He currently has more turnovers than assists, but I don’t see that as a pure skill issue.
The biggest appeal with Peterson is his jump shooting.
He’s shooting 46% on catch-and-shoot threes, many of them heavily contested or on the move. On clean spot-ups, he’s been nearly automatic. He’s also shooting 41% coming off off-ball screens and 38% off handoffs. His ability to set his feet and rise into shots on the move is advanced for his age.
On pull-up twos, he’s been extremely efficient – 50% overall and 59% inside 17 feet. That’s elite short midrange production, even if it’s on modest volume.
Where he struggles is pull-up threes, where he’s just 9-for-29, and overall rim volume. He’s finishing 66% at the rim but attempting only 2.7 shots per game there. For an athlete of his caliber, that number should be closer to four or five.
Stylistically, I see more young Ray Allen than Anthony Edwards. Peterson is a great athlete, but not quite at that Edwards level. He’s more of a movement shooter and catch-and-shoot threat at heart. Nearly 70% of his attempts are jump shots.
The next step for him is tying together the on-ball package. If he improves as a pull-up three-point shooter, increases rim pressure, and balances his scoring with playmaking, that’s when he can move from fringe All-NBA territory into legitimate MVP conversations.
On the passing front, I see flashes of high-level reads – cross-court passes, lobs, pocket passes. Most of his turnovers come from forcing drives or over-penetration, not from an inability to see the floor. That suggests it’s more about decision-making rhythm than a lack of vision.
Defensively, he may actually be ahead of Dybantsa early in his career. He shows strong instincts, physical tools, and playmaking on that end, averaging over two stocks per 36 minutes.
Where Would Cooper Flagg Fit?
One last wrinkle: if Cooper Flagg were in this draft class, where would he land?
Based purely on what we knew of him as a prospect, I think he’d be in the same tier as Dybantsa and Peterson, probably third. Based on what we now know from his early NBA success, I’d probably slot him second behind Dybantsa.
The key point is that all three players are in the same tier. There isn’t a massive gap separating them. Even choosing Dybantsa over Peterson right now is a razor-thin decision.
There’s a lot of basketball left to be played. My evaluation could change by June. But as things stand today, AJ Dybantsa’s rim pressure, physical aggression, and overall ceiling give him the slight edge for the number one spot in the 2026 NBA Draft.
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