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By Rowan Fisher-Shotton
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The NBA was already hot coming into Round 1 of the 2026 NBA Draft on Tuesday night. The Timberwolves, Nets, and Bulls pulled off a three-way deal, sending Julius Randle to Brooklyn and Nic Claxton to Chicago. Then, the move everybody was waiting for came through, with the Bucks sending Giannis Antetokounmpo to Miami in exchange for Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel'el Ware, Kasparas Jakucionis, and picks.
Then came the draft. The Wizards took AJ Dybantsa No. 1 overall, a move many had speculated for months. Nine of the first 10 picks were freshmen, tying an NBA record, and the first 20 picks all played college basketball, the first time that's happened since 1994.
But there are three NBA franchises that walked out of Brooklyn the undisputed winners.
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1. Utah Jazz
In any other draft, Darryn Peterson probably would have gone first overall. He was widely viewed as the most talented prospect in the class, and some even dubbed him one of the greatest guard prospects of all time. So when he "fell" to No. 2 overall, the Jazz had the easiest decision of the draft. Peterson averaged 20.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.4 steals per game at Kansas last year, shooting 43.8% from the field and 38.2% from 3-point range.
He's 6-foot-5, can score on all three levels, dictate the tempo of the game, and is already one of the favorites to win Rookie of the Year. Peterson's drawn comparisons to Kobe Bryant and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and if he evolves into a version of either one of those players, Utah easily walks away as the biggest winners of the 2026 NBA Draft.
2. Memphis Grizzlies
Just one pick later, the Grizzlies grabbed Duke's freshman star Cameron Boozer, last season's Naismith College Player of the Year. While this hardly came as a surprise, Boozer had been building momentum coming into the draft and some had been urging Washington to take him with the first overall pick. That's how highly analysts were viewing him.
He's the son of Carlos Boozer and was considered the most NBA-ready player in the class, with scouts raving about his strength and versatility just as much as his maturity and professionalism, exactly what a rebuilding team like Memphis needs. He averaged 22.5 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game with the Blue Devils last season, leading them to a 35-3 record and the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. Coming into the draft, he was even drawing comparisons to Nikola Jokic and Kevin Love.
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3. Sacramento Kings
Darius Acuff Jr. is unquestionably the steal of the draft. He averaged 23.5 points, 6.4 assists, and 3.1 rebounds per game last season at Arkansas under John Calipari, who has a long history of developing elite NBA guards. He shot 48.4% from the field, 44% from 3-point range, and led the SEC in both scoring and assists, as a freshman. Entering the draft, he was drawing comparisons to Jalen Brunson, who just won an NBA championship with the Knicks.
Scouts were high on Acuff coming in, and many assumed he would land with the Nets, who are desperate for a lead franchise guard. Instead, Brooklyn took Mikel Brown Jr., letting Acuff fall right in Sacramento's lap. Head coach Doug Christie was criticized last season for leaning too much on the Kings' veterans Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Russell Westbrook. Now, they've got a chance to reset completely with one of the most exciting, and marketable, players in the draft.
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