Good Morning, Illini Nation: 2026 NBA Draft winners

Jun. 25—Are NBA teams getting smarter? More well run? The 2026 NBA Draft felt like one where few teams just bungled the process and nearly all of them made well reasoned picks. So there were plenty of winners. These five stood out:
Keaton Wagler
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The one-and-done Illinois guard can claim the best story of the draft. What he accomplished going from a seriously unheralded recruit to the No. 5 overall pick doesn’t have much of a recent — or even historical — analog. A year ago, few outside Illini basketball circles even knew who Wagler was. Now he’s part of the future of one of two teams in the second biggest market in the league. Impressive. The Los Angeles Clippers, a winner by affiliation, followed up their Wagler pick by taking Baba Miller and Nick Martinelli in the second round. Interesting.
Michigan Wolverines
The fact the Wolverines had three lottery picks — three of the top 12 overall, in fact — paints quite a picture. No wonder they won a national championship. There were questions about what Dusty May was doing with a triple jumbo frontcourt when Michigan added Morez Johnson Jr., Yaxel Lendeborg and Aday Mara out of the transfer last offseason. Turns out May knew what he was doing.
Memphis Grizzlies
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The “Grit and Grind” Grizzlies are back! Memphis got arguably the highest floor player in the draft when they took Cameron Boozer at No. 3 overall. The one-and-one Duke All-American and national player of the year is a winner. Plain and simple. Pairing Boozer with Karim Lopez and Richie Saunders would have been a positive two nights for Memphis. That they wound up with five second-round picks by trading back twice for Lopez and then used three of them to pry Isaiah Stewart from the Detroit Pistons was just as impressive.
Charlotte Hornets
Thoughts on Charlotte’s draft haul might vary, but Hannes Steinbach and Christian Anderson Jr. were two of my favorite players in the draft. Two players I got to see during the 2025-26 season with both coming to Champaign to face Illinois. Steinbach is a voracious rebounder. Anderson is a bucket getter. Playing them alongside Brandon Miller, Kon Knueppel and whomever the Hornets might get for LaMelo Ball could be a lot of fun. That Steinbach and Anderson already have synergy as U19 World Cup teammates (where they beat the U.S. for gold) is a bonus.
Sacramento Kings
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Will Sacramento ever return to its competitive form from the early 2000s? Maybe. It’s a franchise without a defined future, but landing SEC Player of the Year Darius Acuff Jr. (a mega scorer) at No. 7 without having to trade up was a major win. So was adding two serious winners in their rookie class next to Acuff. Alex Karaban won two NCAA titles at UConn, and Emanuel Sharp helped turn Houston back into a powerhouse program.
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