Darryn Peterson, Darius Acuff Jr., & 2 Other Top 2026 NBA Draft Prospects For Fantasy

A few 2026 NBA Draft prospects with the highest potential in fantasy basketball for next season.

Mar 22, 2026; San Diego, CA, USA; Kansas Jayhawks guard Darryn Peterson (22) controls the ball against St. John's Red Storm guard Oziyah Sellers (4) in the second half during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Viejas Arena. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

It is never too early to start etching out a fantasy basketball game plan for next season. That rings even more true with the talent that is in the 2026 NBA Draft class. Here are four players likely worth taking a swing at in fantasy drafts for the 2026-2027 NBA season, as their fantasy potential is crazy high.

Cameron Boozer

Mar 26, 2026; Washington, DC, USA; Duke Blue Devils forward Cameron Boozer (12) stands on court during a practice session ahead of the east regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Capital One Arena. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The big man out of Duke University, Cameron Boozer, proved in his only year at the collegiate level that he can impact a game in a multitude of ways. Last season with the Blue Devils, he averaged 22.5 PPG, 10.2 RPG, and 4.1 APG.

Boozer is almost a guaranteed top-three pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, and in most mock drafts, he is being mocked to be picked at #3 overall by the Memphis Grizzlies. This would be an ideal fit for him to unlock his fantasy potential at a rather high level right away. The Grizzlies did not have a single player last season play over 50 games and averaged over 15 PPG. Ja Morant also looks likely to be on the way out, which would open up even more offensive fantasy upside for Boozer if Memphis drafted him.

Darryn Peterson

Mar 22, 2026; San Diego, CA, USA; Kansas Jayhawks guard Darryn Peterson (22) controls the ball against St. John's Red Storm guard Dylan Darling (0) in the first half during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Viejas Arena. | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

Guard Darryn Peterson, out of the University of Kansas, is coming off an intriguing season that showed off insane potential but also brought up some concerns. Peterson this past season for the Jayhawks, averaged 20.2 PPG, 4.2 RPG, and 1.6 APG. He also shot 38.2% from the 3-point line on 6.9 attempts per game. 

The talent is undoubtedly there for Peterson; the big cause for concern, making him a risk to draft in fantasy basketball, is tied to the availability issues he had at Kansas. Peterson left several games early and missed 11 contest fully of the 35 games they played. 

AJ Dybantsa

Mar 18, 2026; Portland, OR, USA; BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa (3) passes the ball during a practice session ahead of the first round of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center. | Craig Strobeck-Imagn Images

AJ Dybantsa out of BYU is the player most people have mocked to go #1 overall. This past season, he averaged 25.5 PPG, 6.8 RPG, and 3.7 APG. He has all the tools to be an All-NBA type of player, and if he landed with the Washington Wizards at #1 overall, his role in becoming that may actually start slow out of the gates.

The Wizards, although they lacked an available high-level shot creator in their season last year, will get two if no other setbacks come up at the start of the 2025-2026 season. Those players are Trae Young and Anthony Davis. Young averaged 17.9 PPG last season, and Davis averaged 20.4 PPG. With them, it certainly will limit Dybantsa’s fantasy offensive ceiling at first if he gets drafted to the Wizards. 

Darius Acuff Jr.

Mar 25, 2026; San Jose, CA, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks guard Darius Acuff Jr. (5) looks on during a practice session ahead of the west regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at SAP Center. | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

There may be defensive concerns when it comes to Arkansas guard Darius Acuff Jr., but what he does on offense makes him have one of the highest fantasy ceilings in his rookie class. Last season, he averaged 23.5 PPG, 3.1 RPG, and 6.4 APG. He also shot 44% from distance while shooting 5.8 perimeter shots a game.

Acuff Jr. looks all the part of an NBA-ready guard; he just shares the same sentiment as all of these mentioned players— their fantasy ceilings hinge heavily on the team they get drafted to. If he does get drafted into a good situation, his talent will not fail him. He showed he was never scared of the moment all throughout the season, including him and the Razorback run to an SEC Title. That same confidence gives him the potential to one day be one of the best guards in the NBA.