All The Signs From Vegas Suggest That The 2026 Draft Class Might Be One Of The Best We've Ever Seen

Now that we're into the back half of Vegas Summer league, this is the part where we start to see the really good players get shut down. Whenever that happens, it's a bit of a double-edged sword as a fan. On one hand, getting an early shutdown is a great sign for any young prospect, because it usually means they showed enough and were most likely too good for Summer League. On the other hand, as a fan who may have enjoyed watching their prized rookie or young player dominate, it's always a bit of a bummer that their run in Vegas gets cut short.  You're happy for what it could mean for the future, but disappointed that the fun in the present is over.

And while you always have to understand that these games in Vegas are fake, what is absolutely not fake is the excitement and intrigue that exists when these young prospects play well in their first taste of NBA basketball. As a reminder, everything positive you saw regarding your team's young player will 100% translate to the actual games, and everything negative that happened you can throw away because these games don't count. 

When it comes to the 2026 Draft Class, all signs are currently pointing to this class having the potential to be an all timer. All that hype leading into the Draft? At this stage, it certainly feels like it was warranted. I'm not just talking about the top of the Lottery either. We're seeing guys look awesome that were drafted high, late lottery, outside the lottery, and even the 2nd round. Time will tell how many of these performances actually stick, but based on the information we have now? There look to be Draft hits all over the place.

The Big 4

Headling this class is obviously the top 4 picks, and boy oh boy are all four of them delivering. I would imagine that a fan of any of these teams is so over the moon right now given how their top picks are playing, and honestly who coul blame them? That's what Summer League is all about.

All of these guys were considered franchise players, and there was really no wrong choice when it came to who should be picked where. So far, every single one of them has backed up their hype and more

AJ Dybansta looks every bit the #1 pick and franchist talent while showcasing his two way ability

Darryn Peterson has flashed his elite scoring ability and handle while also living up to his hype

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Cam Boozer to no surprise came into Vegas and immediately made an impact while also providing some pretty great mid-game interviews

and then theres Caleb Wilson who has probably had the loudest summer league while showing things we absolutely did not see while he was at UNC, especially the three point shooting

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Is it too early to suggest that we may have another 2003/1996/1984 Draft Class situation on our hands? You know, arguably the greatest classes of all time? I say no. That's exactly what Summer League is for. 

But as I said, the beauty of this class is that things are deeper than just a collection of elite talent at the top. It really does feel like almost every team landed a prospect that could one day provide real NBA value.

The Cavs may have found something real in Maleek Thomas

Who leads Vegas in scoring you might be wondering? It's not any of those top 4 picks. It's not a Lottery pick. It's not a mid or late first round pick either.

The answer, is Maleek Thomas, who somehow fell to the Cavs at #34. How do we think they're feeling about that right now?

Thomas leads all scorers at 28.3 a game on 50/45.8% splits (8.0 3PA!!!) in his 3 games so far, and given how expensive the Cavs roster is, this is the exact type of draft hit the Cavs will need as they move forward in this new CBA world. There's a bit of a trend of Calipari guards sliding in the Draft and then being awesome, so why can't that be the case for Maleek Thomas? Given what we're seeing in Vegas, why can't he carve out a role on the Cavs who are a team that desperately needs perimeter/wing help?

Again, this was a 2nd round pick! That just goes to show you how deep the talent is in this Draft class.

Brayden Burries looks like the lone bright spot in a dark future for the Bucks

Everyone knows that post-Giannis, the Bucks are in for a hard and long rebuild. Dark, dark days are ahead while they start over as a franchise. That's just how it works in the NBA. So when you're in that spot, you're hoping and praying to the Basketball Gods that perhaps the young talent you just drafted may be able to speed up that process. That they at least give you something to be positive and excited about during a year where you're probably going to lose a shit ton of games.

Well, Brayden Burries is certainly giving Bucks fans a legit reason to have some sort of positivity when thinking about their future. He's looked AWESOME

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While the scoring and shooting has been nice, what really stands out to me is his ball security. Summer League for rookie guards can be tough when it comes to turnovers. The game is faster and more physical, and as a result you tend to see young guards struggle in that department. Burries? It's been the exact opposite. 

At this point in Vegas, Burries has 79 points, 12 assists, and only 1 TO in his 3 games played. I'm not sure it gets better than that, folks. He's also shooting 50/44% if you care about efficiency during Summer League, so no matter how you slice it, he's been great. You could argue few fanbases around the league needed something positive to get behind more than Bucks fans following the Giannis trade and what it meant for their future, so at least they can put their energy towards a rookie who looks like he'll be good right away.

The Sixers may have lucked out again with Labaron Philon Jr

Remember when Tyrese Maxey fell to #21 in the 2020 Draft and it didn't take long for him to show just how lucky the Sixers were that he fell into their lap and how dumb teams were for passing on him?

Well, it might be happening again with Labaron Philon Jr. He fell to the Sixers' lap at #22

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How Brad Stevens couldn't have snagged this guy in the Jaylen Brown trade is disappointing, because he looks awesome as well. A solid 21/3/6.5 while shooting 40% from deep on 7.5 3PA and only 2.5 TOs a game, he's definitely looked closer to a lottery talent than an end of first round talent. While it's true the Sixers backcourt is pretty crowded, just knowing you have this type of talent in your system who is only going to continue to get better is the cherry on top of what has been a pretty remarkable offseason for the Sixers. 

You add Jaylen Brown, you got off PG13's deal, you might still get LeBron AND you drafted another young stud guard? As much as it pains me to say, that's pretty good business. 

Brad Stevens might actually be a GOAT drafter

One of the challenges of always beeing a pretty damn good team is you have to find diamonds in the rough when it comes to the Draft. As the boss, Brad Stevens has never picked higher than #27 in any Draft. Meanwhile, he's been able to find a handful of young players who look like they can actually play at the NBA level, whether it's Jordan Walsh (#38), Baylor Scheierman (#30), Hugo Gonzalez (#28), or Amari Williams (#46, TBD).

As another expensive roster, finding these low cost players who you develop into rotation players is extremely important for the Celts moving forward, and so far in Vegas it looks like we're about to add two more players to the list in Chris Cenac Jr (#27) and Dillon Mitchell (#40). While neither of these guys are expected to be ready in Year 1 and both will spend a lot of time in Maine, there are signs that we're heading in the right direction

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There have been two pretty surprising developments for both players so far in their Vegas games. For Cenac Jr, for me it's the rim protection. After basically never blocking shots at Houston, he's averaging 3.0 blocks a game and has 2 games already with 4 blocks. The athleticism is no joke, his ability to crash the glass is no joke, and while he's still extremely raw offensively, you can see the flashes of potential. Given the positional need, him ending up being a draft hit would be a VERY big deal.

With Dillon Mitchell, we see the athleticism. We see the defensive impact. But what has surprised the hell out of me is his outside shooting. This is a guy who shot 6.7% from deep in college. That was the biggest knock on him as a prospect, that he was the very definition of a non-shooter. Well so far in Vegas, Mitchell is shooting 37% from deep. He's made more 3s in 3 Summer League games than he did all of last season at St. Johns! While I wouldn't exactly call him Steph Curry, I also wouldn't say he's a complete non-shooter. He may not be "good" yet, but there's a foundation there that is a welcome surprise. 

There was a reason Mike Zarren said when they Drafted him that they weren't worried about his shot and that they could teach him to shoot. If that's true?

Giphy Images.

The Knicks might have the best shooter in the class

As current Champs, there aren't too many things that could make life any better for the Knicks or their fans. Well, what if they also happened to land the best shooter of the class? 

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I don't hate those comps considering he's averaging 4.3 3PM on 44.8% shooting from deep (9.5 3PA) so far in Vegas. That's definitely some Sam Hauser shit. And listen, there's no denying that in today's NBA, shooting and spacing are crucial. A big part of why the Knicks won the title was because of how great their shotmaking was, especially from deep (see: Landry Shamet).

So, as a team that's up against the 2nd apron finding another cheap elite shooter is a pretty big deal. To find that player at #47? That's a homerun. 

Yaxel Lendeborg looks ready for NBA rotation minutes

I think it's safe to say that the Warriors have fumbled the later years of Steph's career, especially when it comes to the Draft. Just disaster after disaster. Many argue that's maybe why they went for the NBA ready player in Yaxel Lendeborg, and the early returns suggest that he's ready to make a real impact on Day 1 of the regular season. 

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Lord knows the Warriors need all the immediate win now talent they can get as Steph enters the final years of his career, and after the last few lottery picks didn't exactly pan out for GS, everything we've seen so far points to Yaxel finally being the hit that Steph has needed. 

Can that also be enough to entice LeBron to come to the Bay?

We'll see.

I could go on, but this feels like a good place to stop. If there's someone you've been impressed with so far that wasn't mentioned, let's hear it in the comments. The haters and losers of the world will tell you that Summer League doesn't matter and blah blah blah, but don't listen to those people. Every dribble matters, and there's no shame in being excited if someone on your favorite team looks awesome in Vegas. That's all part of the fun.