NBA Draft Lottery 2026: Five Takeaways Before Sunday

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May 7, 2026

The NBA Draft Lottery 2026 airs Sunday, May 10 on ABC, per ESPN. Thirteen teams enter with No. 1 pick odds in play. Three of those teams sit at 14 percent, the top tier. AJ Dybantsa and Darryn Peterson headline the prospect race. Cameron Boozer rounds out the consensus top three.

Five Takeaways Before NBA Draft Lottery Night

The Brooklyn Nets carry 14 percent odds at the No. 1 pick, per CBS Sports. The Sacramento Kings sit at 11.5 percent in the same projections. The Chicago Bulls trail at 4.5 percent after a higher seed finish. Thirteen teams enter Sunday’s drawing because the Milwaukee Bucks owe their pick elsewhere, per CBS Sports.

AJ Dybantsa and Darryn Peterson headline the 2026 prospect race, per ESPN. Cameron Boozer rounds out the consensus top three, per ESPN. AJ Dybantsa played his senior year at Utah Prep before one season at BYU, per CBS Sports. The class has no clear consensus No. 1, with team fit driving each board, per CBS Sports.

The Washington Wizards sit at the deadline crossroads after trading for Trae Young and Anthony Davis, per CBS Sports. Anthony Davis “may end up somewhere else” before next season, per Chris Haynes via CBS Sports. The Memphis Grizzlies face a possible Ja Morant exit after dealing Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr., per CBS Sports. The Utah Jazz pushed chips in for Jaren Jackson Jr. from Memphis at this season’s deadline, per CBS Sports.

The NBA owners may approve a 3-2-1 lottery reform next year, per CBS Sports. The 3-2-1 reform would flatten odds at the top to combat tanking, per CBS Sports. The 2026 class therefore stands as the last under the current 14 percent ceiling. The Brooklyn Nets, Sacramento Kings, and Chicago Bulls all enter Sunday with rebuilds in the balance.