2026 NBA Draft Stock Watch: Kingston Flemings Rises, Nate Ament’s Uneven Start

The race for the No. 1 pick is still too close to call with three prospects flashing their unique skill sets in the nonconference college basketball season.

Houston guard Kingston Flemings is averaging 14.8 points and 4.9 assists per game for the 10–1 Cougars. / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Excitement continues to build about the top of the 2026 NBA draft. 

The elite prospects, many of whom have been on radars for years, have largely dominated the start of the college basketball season, and the battle for the top pick rages on. But beyond what appears to be a consensus top three, there’s still much to be determined as the college season heats up into conference play.

Here’s an update on the race for the top pick as well as some risers and fallers based on their current play.

The latest at the top 

AJ Dybantsa may have had the best individual performance by a prospect this season in the second half of BYU’s thrilling comeback win over Clemson. He completely took over the game, not just as a scorer but also by making plays for others and defending at an elite level. It was also impressive to see Dybantsa follow that up with another amazing performance in a buy-game win over UC Riverside, showing off much needed consistency. The highs with Dybantsa will be higher than any other player in this class. Is that enough to propel him to No. 1? 

Darryn Peterson returned from a three-week absence with consecutive 17-point performances against Missouri and NC State. Teams continue to throw extremely aggressive defensive coverages at him to force the ball out of his hands, and for the most part Peterson has handled that well, avoiding turnovers and making the right plays without forcing shots. He very much still looks the part of a No. 1 pick, though dealing with more cramping/muscular discomfort late in the NC State game is a concern. 

Kansas guard Darryn Peterson drives against Missouri forward Mark Mitchell. / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Meanwhile, Cameron Boozer continues to produce. He increasingly looks like the national player of the year, leading Duke to an undefeated start with double-doubles galore. Beauty with this top three is very much in the eye of the beholder; Boozer’s strongest chance for No. 1 would likely be if a win-now organization wins the lottery and gets to pick at the top. 

If you made me handicap the race today, I’d stick with the same order from November’s big board: No. 1 Peterson, No. 2 Dybantsa, No. 3 Boozer. But it’d be hard for any team not to be thrilled to land any of the top three. 

Stock rising 

Kingston Flemings, Houston

Flemings wasn’t expected to be a one-and-done entering the college season, but has arguably been the best point guard prospect in college through a month and a half. His analytical profile pops off the page with a top-five box plus/minus nationally while shooting better than 60% from the field and 50% from three. He’s an elite rim finisher and a ballhawk defensively who recently posted eight steals in a game vs. Florida State. Scouts will closely watch his matchup Saturday with Arkansas point guard Darius Acuff—another opportunity for Flemings to cement himself as a potential top-10 pick. 

Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan 

Early on, it looks like Lendeborg made the right decision coming back to college and transferring to Michigan, where he has taken his game to yet another level and is leading a Wolverines team that looks like a top national title contender. There are times where Lendeborg quite frankly looks out of place (in a good way) playing college basketball, overpowering opponents with his combination of size, athleticism, motor and skill level. He has made meaningful strides as a three-point shooter and is knocking down two per game at 40% so far this season, and has proven that he can play as a full time three/four at the college level after often playing center at UAB. Lendeborg increasingly looks like a guy who could sneak into the top 10 or at the latest, the back end of the lottery. 

Michigan forward Yaxel Lendeborg drives to the basket for a layup against Maryland. / Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images

Keaton Wagler, Illinois 

Sports Illustrated included Wagler at No. 30 in its first big board in November, an early shot-call on a player who had just two high-major offers out of high school. At the time, we wrote that he wasn’t a surefire one-and-done, but had the upside to play his way into a serious first-round contender. His recent three-game flurry has certainly done that. Since his worst college game against UConn, Wagler has averaged 19 points, nearly seven assists and made 11 threes in three games, all against high-major competition. He’s not an explosive athlete and lacks physicality, but the production on a high-level team is hard to ignore.

Henri Veesaar, North Carolina 

While Caleb Wilson earns most of the headlines from North Carolina’s surprising start, Veesaar’s impact since transferring from Arizona has been absolutely massive. The Estonian big man has been a two-way force for the Tar Heels, one of the most skilled frontcourt players in the country in ball screens because of his shooting ability, touch at the rim and passing chops in the short roll. He’s also a solid defender, using length and verticality to impact shots at the rim. It wouldn’t be a shock to see Veesaar play his way into the late first-round conversation and set up one of the most critical stay-or-go college decisions for the 2026–27 season. 

Stock falling 

Nate Ament, Tennessee

Ament’s uneven first 10 games in a Tennessee uniform can be divided most cleanly based on the level of competition. In six games against teams ranked outside the top 100 per KenPom, Ament is averaging 19 points, nearly eight rebounds and shooting 45% from the field. In four games vs. top-100 competition, Ament is shooting just 26% from the field and averaging 12 points per contest, and the Vols are just 1–3 in those games. And while Ament is a much better three-point shooter than his percentages would indicate, his issues generating easy looks and finishing around the rim (22 of 46 on the season) are a bit more alarming from an NBA translation standpoint. 

It’s not time to panic with Ament though. He was always perceived as the most raw of the elite prospects in this class, and he’s in a difficult context at Tennessee without a ton of help around him offensively. Getting out of this slump from the perimeter should open things up for the rest of his offensive game. That said, the debate between the hyper-productive Wilson (a more athletic, less skilled option) and Ament seems likely to heat up as conference play approaches. 

Syracuse forward Tyler Betsey (left) and Tennessee forward Nate Ament battle for the ball. / Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

Dame Sarr, Duke 

Sarr was always expected to be something of a project, but he has yet to have a true standout performance in any of Duke’s high-profile early season games. He’s a very limited offensive player at this stage in his development, shooting 36% from three at low volume but adding very little otherwise outside of transition opportunities. Duke recently inserted fellow freshman Nik Khamenia into the starting lineup over Sarr, and Khamenia had his best performance of the season in the Blue Devils’ win over Michigan State. 

Sarr remains a very intriguing prospect because of his physical gifts and defensive upside, but it becomes harder to justify using a top-10 pick on someone who seems fairly far away from making a sizable impact on NBA games. 

Tounde Yessoufou, Baylor 

While he has stacked up counting stats at an impressive clip early in his college career, the tape tells a more complicated story for the Beninese wing. He’s a terror in transition because of his straight-line speed and muscular frame, but in the half court his impact is more touch and go. Yessoufou’s game still heavily relies on overpowering defenders with his size, and it won’t be as easy to take advantage of those mismatches in the NBA. Right now, his skill level looks more like that of an undersized power forward than the traditional wing he needs to blossom into to become a surefire top-20 pick. 

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