The Brooklyn Nets will have a tough decision to make when the first round of the 2026 NBA Draft comes around on Jun. 23 as they will have to take someone with the No. 6 pick overall pick. Between now and Jun. 23, there will be plenty of speculation over who Brooklyn will take according to most draft boards, but there is a question over who will be available.
“After a second straight disappointing lottery result dropped the Nets three spots, this pick is viewed around the league as a potential wild-card spot, with Brooklyn needing star power and still developing young players at every position after rostering five first-rounders a year ago,” Jeremy Woo wrote for ESPN in his latest mock draft. Woo projected the Nets to take Arkansas guard Darius Acuff Jr. with the No. 6 pick.
“What direction the Nets wind up going might offer insight into how they view their current prospects. They also have cap space and a supply of tradable future firsts at their disposal,” Woo continued. “Acuff Jr. doesn’t fit Brooklyn’s established positional-size philosophy, but he has a best-available case if this is how the board falls. It’s not viewed as a given that the Nets select a guard, however, and they could find value in trading back.”
Based off most mock drafts, there seems to be a tier break between the top-4 pick, expected to be BYU forward AJ Dybantsa, Kansas guard Darryn Peterson, Duke forward Cameron Boozer, and North Carolina forward Caleb Wilson in some order. The draft could potentially start with the No. 5 pick as the Los Angeles Clippers will have to select which one of the guard prospects they will move forward with.
Woo projects the Clippers to take Illinois guard Keaton Wagler to play next to Darius Garland and if that happens, the Nets would have their choice of guards like Acuff, Louisville’s Mikel Brown Jr., and Houston’s Kingston Flemings. Each of the guards expected to be available for Brooklyn to take has different skills they bring to the floor so it will depend on where general manager Sean Marks and the front office wants to go at No. 6.
This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Should the Nets take Darius Acuff Jr. if he falls in 2026 NBA Draft?
Reporting by Sharif Phillips-Keaton, Nets Wire / Nets Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
