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ESPN explains why Nate Ament could be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft

IMG_3593by: Grant Ramey07/04/25GrantRamey
Nate Ament, Tennessee Basketball | Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
(Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images) Tennessee basketball signee Nate Ament attending the NCAA college baseball Knoxville Regional final between Tennessee and Wake Forest on June 1, 2025, in Knoxville, Tenn.

Tennessee Basketball five-star freshman Nate Ament is one of four players that has a shot to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, but he has the longest odds in the group. 

ESPN has Kansas freshman guard Darryn Peterson, BYU freshman wing A.J. Dybantsa and Duke freshman forward Cameron Boozer, along with Ament, as the possibilities for the No. 1 pick next summer.

“Most NBA teams think it would be difficult, but not impossible, to usurp Peterson and Dybantsa as the top two players,” Givony wrote, “barring a major surprise.”

Ament committed to and signed with Tennessee in April, picking the Vols over Duke, Kentucky, Arkansas and Louisville, among others. He’s one of the highest-ranked prep prospect to ever sign with Tennessee, finishing his prep career as the No. 2 overall player in the 2025 class in the On3 ratings. 

“Ament is a late addition to the No. 1 pick conversation and the furthest away of the four from reaching his potential,” Givony wrote, “in no small part because he weighs 186 pounds. But ultra-talented wing players with his fluidity, shotmaking prowess, defensive versatility and scoring ability are often deemed franchise-type prospects.”

Tobias Harris in 2010 and Allan Houston in 1989 are the only other Tennessee players who were consensus top-five players as recruits. 

Ament is the seventh five-star prospect to sign with the Vols during the Rick Barnes era and is the 13th McDonald’s All-American in Tennessee’s program history.

“There were plenty of NBA executives who walked out of the McDonald’s All American Game in April and said Ament has (NBA) All-Star potential,” Givony wrote. “After starting practice at Tennessee on June 17, Ament appears to be adding weight and will be in a featured role in the SEC, giving him every opportunity to make his case as a surprise No. 1 candidate.”

ESPN’s first mock draft for the 2026 NBA Draft has Peterson at No. 1 overall to the Washington Wizards, Dybantsa at No. 2 to the Utah Jazz and Boozer at No. 3 to the Brooklyn Nets.

Ament is projected at No. 4 overall to the Charlotte Hornets.

“He’s a tremendous shotmaker,” Givony wrote in the mock draft. “He has improved his passing and defensive versatility; and his ability to get a shot off almost at will gives him perhaps the highest upside of any prospect in this class. He’ll be a focal point at Tennessee, allowing NBA teams to evaluate whether he can emerge as a consistently efficient, winning player in a challenging SEC.” 

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