We are in the homestretch and news keeps breaking. Just before noon Tuesday, Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo! Sports tweeted out the latest: a Brooklyn workout pitting two prospects among those most mentioned as Nets possibilities, whether at No. 6 … or later.
It’s Karim Lopez of Mexico and the New Zealand Breakers vs. Nate Ament of Tennessee behind closed doors at HSS Training Center TODAY, as Lopez revealed to O’Connor…
”I’m going to Brooklyn,” he told O’Connor. “Going up against Nate Ament. I think that’s who’s going to be in that workout. I’m super excited about that. I feel like it’s going to be a good one. I’m excited.”
Tje matchup shouldn’t be that much of a surprise. Teams will often pair similar prospects in one-on-one workouts. The two are both 19, both in the 6’10” range, both probably still growing and both prospective NBA wings. Ament may be the better offensive player, Lopez the better defender.
Also, no surprise that the Nets are now working out the top lottery picks. The 2026 NBA draft is two weeks away from Tuesday, and buzz surrounding the Brooklyn Nets is heating up as fans eagerly await June 23-24 in Brooklyn. At the moment, the Nets have the No. 6 pick in the first round — their highest pick since the New Jersey Nets took Derrick Favors at No. 3 in 2010, as well as two seconds at No. 33 and 43. So it’s a big deal.
Last week, much of the attention centered on Nate Ament and his rapid rise as the potential favorite for the Nets. Things have changed since the weekend though with the focus returning to the four lead guards, in alphabetical order: Darius Acuff, of Arkansas, Mikel Brown Jr. of Louisville, Kingston Flemings of Louisville and Keaton Wagler of Illinois.
The big news was that two of the four have been worked out by the Nets brass in the past week: Acuff at HSS Training Center and Brown in Orlando where they also met with his family, as James Barlowe tweeted…
The news as described is significant for a number of reasons: the Nets traveled to see Brown and that he will be in Brooklyn at some point over the next two weeks. Teams can only workout and/or visit with prospects twice.
Then, Brett Siegel of Clutch Points wrote in his latest mock draft that Flemings will soon be in as well.
Flemings will do workouts for the Nets and Clippers, and he has worked out for both the Hawks and Bulls, sources said. He is the greatest unknown in terms of where he could end up in the lottery, especially with the Bulls and Grizzlies mentioned as frequent trade-up teams for him.
There was a lot of information in Siegel’s update including this about Brown:
The rumor around the NBA in recent days is that Mikel Brown Jr. and his camp have shut down workout invites outside of those already accepted, which likely signals that a team has promised him following individual meetings and workouts.
Just as likely however is that Brown’s agents also want to limit his workouts to a narrow range of teams, as Krysten Peek noted.
Beyond that news, NetsDaily has been making our own calls to sources about where the Nets stand. It’s no easy task. Sean Marks & co.
Who is the favorite at No. 6?
As I noted above, Ament was the story of last week in NetsWorld, which seemingly threw a large portion of the fanbase into a frenzy. And Siegel reported that at the moment, he, Brown and Acuff are the three names he’s heard most often associated with the Nets.
Last Monday, I reported that the Nets’ interest in Ament “appears to be gaining legitimate traction.” I also added that a few weeks ago, a source described him as a “dark horse” to be selected by Brooklyn at No. 6, while touting his potential fit alongside Egor Dëmin, who the organization selected at No. 8 last year.
The source also added, though, that the Tennessee product is viewed as a “polarizing player” around the league.
At the very least, the Nets are intrigued, I’m told. However, I wouldn’t go as far as to say that he is the current favorite at No. 6 based on my conversations with league sources. I am under the belief that Louisville’s Brown is the current favorite. It’s important to keep in mind, though, that we are still two weeks out from the draft and a lot can change.
Additionally, as one source told me, the Nets are one of the hardest teams to predict. Last year, they went against the consensus with each of their five first-round picks, making it quite difficult to get a pulse on who they will select at No. 6 this year.
At Louisville last season, Brown Jr. averaged 18.2 points per game, 3.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 1.2 steals on 41.0% shooting from the field and posting a 34.4% clip from beyond the arc. As multiple sources have expressed, he is a Jordi Fernández-type player.
While he was limited to just 21 games (19 starts) last season due to a back injury, it isn’t considered a long-term concern and rather something that can be addressed by an NBA medical team, I’ve been told. He stands at 6’5” and 190 pounds entering the pros.
Other names I’ve been told are in consideration at No. 6 include Michigan’s 7’3” center Aday Mara as well as the usual suspects: Wagler, Flemings, and Acuff.
Based on my conversations with scouts across the league, Acuff’s comparisons to Jalen Brunson and Stephon Marbury are legitimate.
Are the Nets more likely to trade up or down?
There are multiple teams within the top 10 of this year’s draft who are interested in trading up into the top four, according to sources. If any teams are going to move out of the first four selections — and admittedly that’s unlikely, the Memphis Grizzlies at No. 3 and the Chicago Bulls at No. 4 are the favorites to do so.
Brooklyn is expected to explore every option, including a move up or down the board, along with sticking and picking at No. 6 overall.
If the Nets do in fact decide to make a trade on draft night, keep an eye on the Bulls as an interesting partner. Owning picks No. 4 and 15, they have reported interest in moving down from No. 4 if they can get some immediate help, along with a potential slide up from No. 15.
As ESPN’s Bobby Marks pointed out, the Nets have the most draft assets through 2033, highlighted by a whopping 14 first-round picks over that span. Obviously, it is highly unlikely that the organization will make even close to all of those picks, meaning they could be better used as trade chips.
Overall, I suspect the Nets are more likely to trade down on draft night than to trade up if they don’t stay at No. 6.
Who are sleeper targets for Brooklyn?
Currently, two of the Nets’ three picks in this year’s draft come in the second round at Nos. 33 and 43 overall.
Each year, a few players fall to the second round and ultimately outplay their draft stock. For the most part, though, they are guys on two-way contracts right away or never truly get an opportunity to showcase their skill set.
Due to NIL, though, the pool of second-round players has become less and less enticing year after year. As one source described it, picking at No. 34 in the NIL era is equivalent to picking at No. 60 overall in the pre-NIL days.
That is how stark the contrast is in the pool of second-round talent since NIL has been introduced.
Two players who have the chance to be steals in the second round this year, though, include international point guards, Germany’s Jack Kayil and Spain’s Sergio De Larrea, according to evaluators.
Standing at 6’3” and 175 pounds, Kayil spent 2025 playing for Alba Berlin of the German Basketball Bundesliga. De Larrea, 6’6” and 175 pounds, played with Valencia of the Spanish Liga ACB and the EuroLeague.
One scout went so far as to say that De Larrea would have been a lottery pick if he had been playing in the NCAA rather than in Spain.
Is Karim Lopez really in play at No. 6?
Similar to the Ament talk, the possibility of the Nets drafting Karim López at No. 6 overall infuriates a large portion of the team’s fanbase … but as ’s workout schedule shows, the Nets have serious interest in both.
The Nets have done extreme due diligence on the 19-year-old. Sean Marks has flown to Australia twice, once in November 2024 and again in November of this year to watch him play in person.
At 6’10” and 225 pounds, Lopez played in 31 NBL games for the New Zealand Beakers last season, averaging 11.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and 2.0 assists, while shooting 50.2% from the field and 32.6% from beyond the arc.
League sources tell me they’d be stunned if the Nets selected López at No. 6. Taking him a trade-down scenario would make much more sense.
However, nothing can be ruled out. As I noted above, the Nets are an extremely hard team for even those around the league to predict what they will do because of their lengthy track record of going against the consensus.
How strong is this class?
Overall, this is an encouraging draft class.
While the second round lacks the depth seen in recent years, the strength of the 2026 class lies in its middle tier.
According to league sources, the talent pool in the No. 8 to No. 20 range is viewed as one of the strongest in decades, with some evaluators comparing it favorably to classes dating back to 2000.
Still, any true evaluation of this draft will take time. A prospect’s success depends on far more than talent alone, as development, fit, and roster infrastructure often play significant roles in determining long-term outcomes.
For now, though, there is legitimate reason for optimism surrounding this year’s group.