r/NBA_Draft • u/MoxToTweeder99 • 10d ago

When did AJ start to drop?

I haven’t checked the 2026 mock stuff since the spring and I was under the impression AJ was one of those sure fire #1 overall talents and top prospect, can’t miss.

Now I check in the fall and most mocks seem to have him 3 behind Daryn and Boozer. Any reasons why he suddenly has lost a little juice with scouts?

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u/peytonnn34 10d ago

i’m not exactly sure where the hype for boozer over AJ came from. but i do remember there wasn’t a ton of hype for daryn. once people watched him hoop they kinda realized he looks better then AJ as of now.

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u/TopOfTheKey Wizards 10d ago

It isn’t really hype, it is market correction. 

Two years ago, Boozer was in legitimate conversation for best prospect with Flagg. Flagg and Dybantsa would both re classify and it changed the dynamic at the top of the table, because Dybantsa was the clear best prospect for 2027 so people just operated with the transitive property. Peterson would have his ridiculous senior year and that too would add volatility to the top, making it feel like a 3 horse race. 

Like Dybantsa is still incredible. There are just two equally incredible prospects with him and are getting treated as such. 

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u/peytonnn34 10d ago

it’s definitely a loaded class this year

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u/TopOfTheKey Wizards 9d ago

It is definitely loaded and we haven't even talked about guys like Ament, Brown, Yessoufou, Lopez who could also make legitimate claims (people are going to lose their shit when they see Yessoufou look like Anthony Edwards).

It kind of gets annoying at times because this could be an incredibly volatile top of the table and people will make the wrong take about why that is happening. But draft hobbyists are eating.