Who do pundits believe the Dallas Mavericks will select in the 2026 NBA Draft?
The Dallas Mavericks season is over and the team will now turn its full focus to the offseason with the NBA Draft Lottery and draft approaching.
After a historic rookie season for Cooper Flagg, the Mavs ended up tied for the seventh-best odds to get the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft. They’ll have to wait till the lottery on Monday to find out if they’ll stay as the seventh pick or drop to the eighth slot.
Here’s who pundits have the Mavs picking — assuming they don’t outperform their odds once again and end up with the top selection.
Cameron Salerno, CBS Sports
Brown’s freshman season at Louisville was a mixed bag. He played in just 21 games and missed the stretch run of the season due to a back injury. Brown did show flashes of his elite shooting (34.4% on 7.6 3-point attempts per game) when he did play, which was highlighted by him knocking down 10 3-pointers against NC State.
Bryan Kalbrosky, USA TODAY
The 19-year-old guard played a crucial role to help the Fighting Illini earn a spot in the Final Four, where he recorded 20 points and 8 rebounds against UConn in the national semifinals. The freshman also dropped 25 points in the Elite Eight. He projects as one of the best 3-point shooters in this class, shooting 39.7 percent from beyond the arc as a freshman, while connecting on as many as nine 3-pointers in a game.
J. Kyle Mann, The Ringer
Pick: Mikel Brown Jr, Louisville
Obviously, the Mavs would much rather be picking a few spots earlier—Wagler would be a great fit—but Brown is an electric ball handler in open space who can also just as easily rocket off of pin-downs, staggers, and flare screens as a shooter. His strange up-and-down year at Louisville has had a suppressing effect on his value, but he is one of the stealthier star bets in this range. Pairing Brown with a blossoming creator like Flagg could be an ideal developmental setup for him to control how much responsibility he’s given as he polishes the finer details.
Kevin O’Connor, Yahoo Sports
Pick: Kingston Flemings, Houston
Flemings entered the season as the least-heralded of Houston’s stacked freshman class, but he played his way into the top-10 conversation while his higher-ranked teammates played their way out of it. He’s a 6-4 ball-handler who can get to his spots, make advanced passes and limit turnovers in a way that resembles a veteran guard. If he lands with Dallas, it’s hard to imagine a better situation. Kyrie Irving could serve as a mentor, and Flemings could grow alongside a future MVP candidate in Flagg.
Jeremy Woo, ESPN
Acuff was named SEC Player of the Year after a stellar season that solidified him as a lottery pick. His ability to navigate tight spaces on the court, create his own offense and find teammates has been a major separator.
NBA teams have concerns about his defense, but it’s hard to deny Acuff’s ability to manufacture points. There’s variance of opinion on how he stacks up long term against his peers, but Acuff is the most NBA-ready of the four guards.
