How Did The Brotherhood Do In The 2026 NBA Draft?
· Yahoo Sports
So the draft is over, and what does it mean for the many tentacles of the Brotherhood? Let’s look at it. Well, some of them, anyway. There’s a lot of sifting and sorting to be done yet.
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First, this year’s draftees: Cameron Boozer is a Grizzlie with the #3 pick, Isaiah Evans is a Timberwolf with the #33 pick, and Maliq Brown went to the Spurs with the #44 pick.
The Grizzlies traded for Detroit’s Isaiah Stewart, which means they suddenly have a very rugged frontcourt. They have Boozer, Stewart, and man mountain Zach Edey. Those guys are going to leave some bruises, and Stewart can help get Boozer up to speed on the league. And they also picked up Karim Lopez, who is apparently a bit of a bruiser himself.
All of it should also allow them to move away from Ja Morant, and if he decides to be foolish again, guns or otherwise, assuming they can’t trade him, they can afford to glue him to the bench. Cedric Coward and Ty Jerome could manage and be much steadier.
Incidentally, like Darryn Peterson, taken with the #2 pick by Utah, Boozer felt he should have been the #1 pick. Actually, he probably got a break. Washington has been a black hole in the NBA galaxy for decades, a place where careers go to die. He’s better off with Memphis.
Evans was taken by Brooklyn and sent to the T-Wolves, where he can build a solid niche, especially with Donte DiVincenzo getting over a serious injury. He can take pressure off of Anthony Edwards and help open the interior for an aging Rudy Gobert. Everybody can use a flamethrower.
The San Antonio Spurs went hard for defensive help after getting beaten up inside by the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals. Brown can guard multiple positions, and he, along with Jayden Quaintance (6-9/253) and Tarris Reed (6-10/260), should offer reed-thin Victor Wembanyama some protection from rough defenders.
However, adding three young big men probably means Brotherhood member Mason Plumlee, now 36, won’t be back.
In Dallas, the Mavericks picked up Morez Johnson and Tobi Lawal. Both should help Cooper Flagg in the frontcourt. Johnson can help in a lot of ways, and while he hasn’t fully mastered the game, Lawal is a spectacular athlete. It’ll be interesting to see what new coach Dusty May does with him, not to mention how Kyrie Irving will work with them.
The Mavs also traded for Sergio De Larrea, a 6-6 Spaniard who could help if he is on the roster this year. There is some speculation that he could be a draft-and-stash.
In Charlotte, Kon Knueppel will greet new teammates Hannes Steinbach and Christian Anderson (there’s a bad joke there somewhere with Hannes Christian Anderson).
Steinbach is a promising big man who rebounds well, and Anderson will add more perimeter sniping. The Hornets rise should continue. However, they still need some muscle. They’d probably take San Antonio’s haul without asking twice.
Still, look at the young core: Knueppel, LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller, Miles Bridges, Moussa Diabate, Sion James, Ryan Kalkbrenner, and now Steinbach and Anderson. They’ll probably lose Coby White to free agency, but Anderson may cover that.
It’s a solid core and if they can pick up a couple of pieces, they might go far, but perhaps without Ball, who Charlotte is shopping around, which might persuade them to hang on to White, if possible, as a stop-gap point guard. Maybe they can find one in free agency. Or maybe it’s a chance to pick up the muscle they think they need.
Out in San Francisco, GM Mike Dunleavy has the unenviable task of moving from the Steph Curry era to whatever will replace it.
The Warriors picked up Michigan’s Yaxel Lendeborg, and he’s a pretty solid prospect. We were surprised by Florida State’s Lajae Jones, who impressed us last year. Golden State got him with the 54th pick.
In Los Angeles, coach JJ Redick will add Baylor’s Cameron Carr. A 6-5 guard, he’s lavishly athletic. They still need a quality center, though.
In Detroit, meanwhile, Trajan Langdon made some interesting moves. The Pistons got Stanford’s Ebuka Okorie with the 17th pick. It’s a bit of a gamble, only because he’s a smallish guard, and we saw him struggle with bigger defenders, notably Blue Devil Dame Sarr. He’ll see a lot of guys like that, especially if he continue to score a lot.
Detroit also got Virginia’s Ugonna Onyenso with the 53rd pick. Onyenso has the potential to be a devastating shot blocker. Langdon, as noted, shipped Isaiah Stewart to the Grizzlies, so he may not be done wheeling and dealing yet.
In Hotlanta, Quin Snyder and the Hawks got Kingston Fleming from Illinois with the #8 pick, St. John’s Zuby Ejiofor with the #23 pick, and UNC’s Henri Veesaar at #52 after a trade with the L.A. Clippers.
Toronto GM Bobby Webster seems to have a type. Over the years, he has selected 6-8 Scottie Barnes, and traded for former Blue Devils RJ Barrett and Brandon Ingram. This year, he picked Alan Graves with the 19th pick. A 6-9 forward who was a guard before he grew, Graves has a similar package of skills as the others we just mentioned. They may not all be on the roster next season, but the guy has a pretty clear preference for mid-sized, versatile talents.
Out in Phoenix, Khaman Maluach and Mark Williams may have gotten an enforcer as Arizona’s Koa Peat was taken with the 30th pick.
Other ACC players who were taken include Caleb Wilson, who went to the Chicago Bulls with the #4 pick. He somewhat foolishly called himself a GOAT, which is a bad move since Chicago’s real GOAT, Michael Jordan, also came from UNC. Wilson should be good, but he would have been smarter to be a bit more modest. He’s never going to be the GOAT in Chicago.
Louisville’s Mikel Brown went to Brooklyn with the #6 pick, and Cardinal teammate Ryan Conwell ended up with Miami after being taken with the 37th pick by Oklahoma City. Finally, SMU’s Jaron Pierre was taken with the 58th pick by the New Orleans Pelicans.
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