2026 NBA Draft order, news, live updates: Wizards pick No. 1 overall with AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson among top prospects
Story by
Yahoo Sports StaffTue, June 23, 2026 at 10:45 PM UTCOne of the most anticipated NBA drafts of recent memory tips off on Tuesday. The 2026 draft class is topped by four prospects viewed as being worthy of the No. 1 overall selection by the Washington Wizards.
BYU forward AJ Dybantsa and Kansas guard Darryn Peterson are both strong contenders to go first overall. But Duke forward Cameron Boozer could also be a possibility, while North Carolina forward Caleb Wilson likely would have topped the class in several other years.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAs many as 10 players could make an immediate impact for the teams selecting them, especially those that need playmaking and sharpshooting guards, including Arkansas' Darius Acuff, Illinois' Keaton Wagler and Louisville's Mikel Brown Jr.
Check out Yahoo Sports' coverage of the 2026 NBA Draft, including analyst Kevin O'Connor's latest mock draft and his big board, in addition to the full draft order.
The first night of the NBA Draft could also see several major trades made with fringe playoff contenders among the 14 lottery selections. Giannis Antetokounmpo was the first domino to fall in a big-time swap with the Miami Heat that included Tyler Herro and three first-round picks, among other assets. Will there be another star on the move on draft night?
How to watch Round 1 of the 2026 NBA Draft
Round 1 start time: 8 p.m. ET
Location: Barclays Center | Brooklyn, N.Y.
TV channel: ESPN
Follow along with Yahoo Sports for the latest news, rumors and more from the 2026 NBA Draft.
Which teams aren't picking in the first round?
There are six teams without a first-round pick heading into draft night.
Tue, June 23, 2026 at 3:30 PM PDTBen Rohrbach
Has Boston burned its bridge with Jaylen Brown?
Heat team president Pat Riley once issued a press release telling then-Celtics executive Danny Ainge to "shut the f*** up and manage his own team," so you get the sense there is extra satisfaction to Miami edging Boston in these Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes.
Not only have the Heat secured Antetokounmpo, forging a could-be contender (if Miami can flesh out a competitive roster around a two-time NBA MVP and Bam Adebayo), they have weakened an Eastern Conference rival, as there will be fallout from this in Boston.
How could there not be? Boston offered Jaylen Brown, the league's 2024 Finals MVP, plus two unprotected first-round draft picks for Antetokounmpo, per ESPN's Shams Charania. This after Brown rallied the Celtics this past season in the absence of injured superstar Jayson Tatum, leading them to 56 wins and a No. 2 seed in the East playoffs.
Tue, June 23, 2026 at 3:15 PM PDTJason Owens
The stars of one of the most anticipated drafts in NBA history are ready for their moment.
AdvertisementAdvertisement
Tue, June 23, 2026 at 3:00 PM PDTDan DevineGiannis Antetokounmpo trade winners and losers
It wasn't quite a Luka-for-AD-level middle of the night mind-melter, but when one of the 16 players in NBA history to win multiple Most Valuable Player trophies gets traded, it does tend to send shockwaves throughout the basketball-watching world … even if pretty much everyone had been expecting it for months (if not longer).
We awoke Tuesday in a world where Giannis Antetokounmpo is a member of the Miami Heat, where Tyler Herro headlines the package of players and picks heading over to the Milwaukee Bucks, and where plenty of interested parties on the outside looking in — most notably, the Boston Celtics — find themselves moving on to Plan B. The reverberations from this one will be felt far and wide; let's start getting our arms around it.
What follows is a stab at a first draft of history — a thumbnail sketch of who and what seems to have been helped and hurt by the wee-hours dealings between Miami and Milwaukee. We begin with the man himself.
Even with Giannis, Heat have 'more work to do' to be East favorites
Dybantsa, Boozer have thoughts on who should go No. 1
Pundits, of course, aren’t the only ones with thoughts about who should go No. 1 tonight:
AdvertisementAdvertisementCam Boozer, AJ Dybantsa in the building
Tue, June 23, 2026 at 2:15 PM PDTKevin O'Connor
NBA Mock Draft 11.0: Latest projections for every pick with fresh intel on day of draft
Draft day has finally arrived! Here's our updated mock draft based on all the latest intel around the NBA ahead of the 2026 NBA Draft (8 p.m. ET, ABC):
1. Washington Wizards
AJ Dybantsa, 6-9, BYU freshman forward
Dybantsa could become one of the NBA's most unstoppable shot creators. At 6-9, he has a special blend of athletic tools with the way he bends, shifts, and explodes with the ball in his hands. He gets to the rim at will, cooks in the midrange, draws fouls at a high rate, and displays point-forward potential. In Washington, the pressure will be alleviated on him early in his career, now that he's teammates with veterans Trae Young and Anthony Davis. In the longer term, Dybantsa fits: Alex Sarr already looks like an effective two-way big, while guards and wings like Kyshawn George, Tre Johnson, Will Riley, and Bilal Coulibaly have all shown flashes. But none of them projects to be a superstar like Dybantsa, whose upside will be determined by whether he can become a knockdown 3-point shooter, as well as a more impactful defender to take full advantage of his physical tools. But even with those areas for improvement, Dybantsa has an MVP ceiling.
2. Utah Jazz
Darryn Peterson, 6-5, Kansas freshman guard
League sources expect Peterson to be the second pick in the draft with the highest upside on the board. Peterson is a buttery smooth scorer with a blend of fluid body control and positional size that gives him the ingredients to become an elite NBA player. At the high school level, he was a dynamic playmaker who used his burst to get into the teeth of defenses and generate buckets for himself and his teammates, while also showing off the kind of shot-making that draws comparisons to Hall of Famers. At Kansas, he thrived in an off-ball role, stroking jumpers out of movement actions and showing he can scale up or down depending on what a roster needs.
Peterson will join a talented young group featuring Ace Bailey, Cody Williams, Brice Sensabaugh and Keyonte George, so his ability to shine with and without the ball will be highly valuable. The concern isn't his game. It's his body. He missed 11 of 35 games and pulled himself out of others due to cramping, which he claims are due to taking creatine. But it's hard to imagine a better situation for Peterson. Even when he isn't scoring, he's a high-impact defender who causes chaos off-ball and has the 6-foot-11 wingspan to switch screens. Now he'll have support around him with All-Stars Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr. in the frontcourt, and the aforementioned blossoming young talents. The Jazz are actually pretty stacked on paper, especially if Walker Kessler re-signs and stays healthy next year. All this talent means Peterson won't have to play savior, and, like Bailey last year, can ease into his NBA routine as a rookie.
The stars of the night are here 🤩
Badenoch blasts 'moaning' female Labour MPs over Burnham jobs 'quota'
Kemi Badenoch has told Labour women to earn a job in Andy Burnham's Cabinet instead of demanding they are handed jobs because of their gender.
The Tory leader lashed out today amid reports that female MPs are demanding the de-facto new prime minister introduce a 50:50 gender split 'quota' in his government.
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister also complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts.
But in a scathing article in the Times today Mrs Badenoch told them to 'stop moaning' and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'.
'There are many, many reasons why you shouldn't have any Milibands in the cabinet,' she said.
'But complaining that the boys haven't given them the right jobs or that the boys are taking all the jobs, just shows that Labour's women still don't get it.'
The idea of quotas was also attacked by Baroness Jacqui Smith, Labour's Skills Minister.
Asked by Times Radio if Mr Burnham should reserve jobs for women, she said: 'No, I think what Andy Burnham should be doing is building the very best team around him to change this country.'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband (above, right, in 2010) is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts
But Mrs Badenoch told them to pipe down and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party and seen by the BBC has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs after he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer.
'We are asking you to demonstrate this change from day one and address the toxicity and misogyny within our own party and government,' it said.
Labour has never had a female leader, while the Conservatives have had three, and Mrs Badenoch urged the government to follow its meritocratic example.
'If you run a meritocracy, then you do not have to worry about jobs for the boys,' she wrote.
'Every woman who is a Conservative MP, every woman who has ever won the leadership, has had to fight to get where she is.
'By contrast, Labour women are demanding guarantees from Burnham. But the truth is he doesn't have to give any guarantees.
'If none of Labour's women are prepared to get their hands dirty and challenge him for the leadership, their demands are toothless.'
'In fact, it's quite revealing that the women's parliamentary Labour Party has written to Burnham asking him to commit himself to at least 50 per cent female ministers.
'This has nothing to do with meritocracy. It is yet more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country.'
