Nets 2026 NBA Mock Draft Roundup: Experts agree Brooklyn needs a ball handler
I Nets he did not have a great season in 2025-26, finishing with the third-worst record in the NBA at 20-62. It was the third straight season Brooklyn finished below .500 and missed the playoffs.
Now, with their pick at No. 6 overall, the Nets will look to the NBA Draft for a savior, or at least a versatile player the team can build around.
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So, here’s what the Nets draft experts did in the first round.
Isaac Trotter, CBS Sports
No. 6: PG Darius Acuff Jr., Arkansas
Brooklyn needs to take the best player available, and with luck, a franchise point guard will fall into his lap. Darius Acuff Jr. walking down is a scary sight for any defense. You have test answers for all levels. I don’t mind his size — he has a 6-foot-7 wingspan and wide shoulders — but I think it’s fair to worry about his athleticism and attention to detail defensively. When that fear sets in, just flip to the tape, sit back and laugh to rule. His 49-point, five-assist, one-turnover performance against Alabama was one of the most offensive performances I’ve seen from a college guard. Acuff is so, so cold. I With us Ament-Brooklyn buzz feels like it’s a bluff to try to make a team like Milwaukee to trade from 10. Sticking to 6 and removing the Acuff makes a lot of sense.
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Zach Buckley, Bleacher Report
No. 6: G Mikel Brown Jr., Louisville
As it gets closer to the start of this draft, it’s getting harder and harder for teams not to bet big on Brown’s abilities. Because his ceiling remains so high— despite some injury and ineffectiveness issues he experienced with the Cardinals.
If those things were related and could not be carried forward, this choice could be felt as his approval to leave.
His scoring punch is strong, and his bucket bag includes everything from shooting—from where?! a deep three to a powerful finish to the basket. Now, add showstopping dime-dropping to the equation, and you’re left looking at a dynamic floor general in training. The Nets need this kind of offensive explosiveness, let alone this level of star potential.
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Bryan Kalbrosky, USA Today
No. 6: G Mikel Brown Jr., Louisville
In this rebuilding chapter, the Nets would like to add a player like talented Louisville guard Mikel Brown Jr., although they drafted three-point guards last season.
He has already completed his second workout in Brooklyn, a person with knowledge of the situation confirmed to USA TODAY Sports. This person asked that their name be withheld because they are not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.
Brown’s draft stock improved during the pre-draft process as he showed teams a clean slate of health. “I got cleared by the medical staff at the Combine, so we’re all green,” Brown Jr. said. he told USA TODAY Sports. “I feel like myself again.”
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The All-ACC guard has deep shooting range and was averaging 29.2 points per game in his last five games, including a 45-point outing against NC State, before his injury in Feb. 28 forced him to miss March Madness.
Jeremy Woo, ESPN
No. 6: PG Darius Acuff Jr., Arkansas
The Brooklyn pick has been a challenge for competing teams to project, with the Nets tied to a large group of prospects and no obvious best fit. Although Acuff doesn’t fit the Nets’ preference for position size on the perimeter, rival teams have seen him as a serious prospect.
Acuff appears to have very little scope in the draft, with the Clippers seemingly focused elsewhere and the Nets and Kings viewed as his top two players. He’s coming off a great season at Arkansas and will be their best shot maker. Mikel Brown Jr. another word you can watch here.
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With us AmentHis size and ability moving forward fits the way the Nets have drafted in the past, and he is viewed by opposing teams as a possibility if they choose not to select a point guard. However, he is far from helping the team win, and there is pressure for the Nets to get better quickly, as they do not control their own pick in 2027 and have not been competitive in the last few seasons.
Brooklyn also has about $34 million in cap space, though it’s unclear how any free agent plans could affect its draft direction.
Kevin O’Connor, Yahoo! Sports
No. 6: G Mikel Brown Jr., Louisville
There is a feeling in the opposing front office that Brooklyn could trade up from this spot, even if the team is trying to jump up the board or move up one spot to the Kings or two spots to the Hawks. Brown is the choice here. When Brown is in the zone, he has an unstoppable pull-up jumper, ambidextrous finishing ability, and a quick read to pass the shot before defenses have time to react. He had a 45-point performance in February after a back injury ended his freshman year and ended his senior year later in the month. The absence clouds the analysis and leaves real questions about his consistency that likely won’t be answered until he’s fully healthy.
