New NBA Draft Rumors on AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson and Top Prospect's Pro Comps from ESPN Scouts

ESPN's Jeremy Woo and Tim Bontemps provided fresh insights into the top prospects in the 2026 NBA draft class.

Woo projected out how the likes of BYU's AJ Dybantsa, Kansas' Darryn Peterson, Duke's Cameron Boozer and North Carolina's Caleb Wilson could fare at the next level. Bontemps offered how evaluators around the league are stacking up the talent on offer.

On Dybantsa, Woo said the 6'9" forward could be a "supercharged Jaylen Brown" given his physical gifts and skill set. Seven-time All Star Kawhi Leonard was referenced as a possible comp as well.

Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman used Brown convey Dybantsa's NBA ceiling as well.

Peterson is a bit of a wild card given the peaks and valleys of his freshman year with the Jayhawks. Woo sees shades of Damian Lillard and Jamal Murray, though he could be more of a 2-guard for an NBA team. In that case, Bontemps cited one scout who compared him to Devin Booker.

"The smoothness, the pace, he's under control all the time," they said. "Like Devin, he knows how to get to his spots on the floor."

Highlights from Darryn Peterson's 28-Point Game

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Wasserman sees shades of Anthony Edwards, suggesting he also considers Peterson to be more of an off-ball guard.

The NBA parallels for Boozer offer a good summary of his talent and physical limitations.

Woo said he could be "Kevin Love with more ball skills" at the high end or "Domantas Sabonis with better three-point shooting" on the low end. Bontemps reported Al Horford is another comp that has circulated around the NBA, "a nod to his high basketball IQ, and his ability to make the right play and impact the game on many different levels."

Love, Sabonis and Horford are all multiple-time All-Stars, but none of the three overwhelmed opponents with supreme athleticism. That was the book on Boozer throughout the 2025-26 season.

Of the four players generally considered to be in the top tier, Wilson has the biggest variance.

"Projecting Wilson requires a bit more imagination than Dybantsa, Peterson and Boozer because Wilson is more raw in key areas of the game, including ball skills, three-point shooting and defensive awareness," Woo said. "Those things might all come in time, creating developmental upside pathways."

Woo wrote Wilson could be a "bouncier Pascal Siakam" or basically be John Collins if the potential doesn't materialize. In the case of the latter, that wouldn't be a great return on a top-five selection.

Wasserman went way back and used retired forward Antonio McDyess as a comp for Wilson. McDyess was an All-Star with the Denver Nuggets in 2000-01, and fans of a certain generation will recall his dynamism before knee injuries derailed his career.

No prospect is ever guaranteed to deliver in the pros. With the trio of Dybantsa, Peterson and Boozer, it does feel as though they're as sure a thing as a team can hope to find.