With the 2025 NBA draft officially in the books, attention in NBA scouting departments and front offices can now pivot to the ’26 class. It’s a group that scouts have been tracking for years, thanks to the star power at the top and the explosion of grassroots scouting being done by NBA teams. There are three elite-level talents at the top of ’26 that could realistically be No. 1 overall picks in other years, and the excitement about that group as well as a burgeoning second and third tier behind them has been bubbling up around the NBA for quite some time.
Here’s an early look at the top names you might hear in next year’s draft:
