Following the 2026 NBA Draft Lottery, in which the Washington Wizards secured the top overall pick, Sports Illustrated has projected Aday Mara to be selected 12th overall by the Oklahoma City Thunder.
“Few players in this draft range have the potential to be as impactful off the bench as Aday Mara, who dominated the NCAA tournament with Michigan thanks to his exceptional rim protection. With Isaiah Hartenstein potentially becoming a free agent (he holds a $28.5 million team option for next year), the opportunity to bolster the frontcourt could be too good to pass up,” wrote Kevin Sweeney.
John Wall and Mark Tatum pose after the Wizards won the No. 1 pick. (LAPRESSE)
Here are the first-round draft projections following the lottery:
1. Washington Wizards: AJ Dybantsa (BYU)
2. Utah Jazz: Darryn Peterson (Kansas)
3. Memphis Grizzlies: Cameron Boozer (Duke)
4. Chicago Bulls: Caleb Wilson (North Carolina)
5. Los Angeles Clippers: Keaton Wagler (Illinois)
6. Brooklyn Nets: Darius Acuff Jr. (Arkansas)
7. Sacramento Kings: Mikel Brown Jr. (Louisville)
8. Atlanta Hawks: Kingston Flemings (Houston)
9. Dallas Mavericks: Brayden Burries (Arizona)
10. Milwaukee Bucks: Nate Ament (Tennessee)
11. Golden State Warriors: Yaxel Lendeborg (Michigan)
12. Oklahoma City Thunder: Aday Mara (Michigan)
13. Miami Heat: Labaron Philon Jr. (Alabama)
14. Charlotte Hornets: Karim López (New Zealand Breakers)
15. Chicago Bulls: Hannes Steinbach (Washington)
16. Memphis Grizzlies: Christian Anderson (Texas Tech)
17. Oklahoma City Thunder: Jayden Quaintance (Kentucky)
18. Charlotte Hornets: Cameron Carr (Baylor)
19. Toronto Raptors: Bennett Stirtz (Iowa)
20. San Antonio Spurs: Allen Graves (Santa Clara)
21. Detroit Pistons: Tyler Tanner (Vanderbilt)
22. Philadelphia 76ers: Chris Cenac Jr. (Houston)
23. Atlanta Hawks: Meleek Thomas (Arkansas)
24. New York Knicks: Koa Peat (Arizona)
25. Los Angeles Lakers: Amari Allen (Alabama)
26. Denver Nuggets: Dailyn Swain (Texas)
27. Boston Celtics: Henri Veesaar (North Carolina)
28. Minnesota Timberwolves: Ebuka Okorie (Stanford)
29. Cleveland Cavaliers: Morez Johnson Jr. (Michigan)
30. Dallas Mavericks: Isaiah Evans (Duke)