Fresh NBA Mock Draft Trends for Notable Prospects Rising and Falling

While the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs are fighting to the finish line of the 2026 NBA Finals, the rest of the hoops world is deep in draft preparation.

As it should be.

Or as it has to be, actually, since the talent grab will get going already on June 23. It isn't quite time to finalize decisions, but the process is far along that it feels like the draft community is getting a better feel for what's coming next.

So, let's work our way through the mock draft circuit to spotlight some of the recent trades around the prospects who are seemingly on the move.

Mikel Brown Jr. Is Climbing

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During a big chunk of mock draft season, it seemed uncertain whether Mikel Brown Jr. was definitely going to get drafted inside of the top 10. He usually made the cut, but not by a lot, as concerns were raised about the injury and inconsistency issues he encountered at Louisville.

Even then, though, it was obvious he had incredible upside as a lead guard with good size, a fully loaded scoring arsenal and a passing highlight reel that could stand alongside anyone's. It seems as if teams—or at least mock drafters—are having a harder time not just fawning over that potential.

Brown jumped up to fifth in the latest mock from Yahoo Sports' Kevin O'Connor, who noted the Los Angeles Clippers "aren't head over heels in love with" Keaton Wagler, who often gets mocked in this spot. CBS Sports' Gary Parrish recently put Brown sixth to the Brooklyn Nets, suggesting Brown might be "the biggest swing they can take."

Brown's stock isn't universally up—he went 10th in the latest mock from The Athletic's Sam Vecenie—but it has jumped in enough places to wonder whether he might just ride this momentum wave into (or awfully close to) the top five.

Morez Johnson Jr. a Lottery Lock?

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The combine probably could not have gone any better for Morez Johnson Jr. His athletic tests were predictably awesome, but he turned heads with his length (7'3.5" wingspan) and his shotmaking (17-of-26 in the three-point star drill).

It felt like a fitting and fruitful finish to an awesome year saw him transfer to Michigan and immediately become an indispensable piece of the Wolverines' championship puzzle. He gained fans throughout the campaign, but that combine showing added more proof to concept about him thriving at the next level.

Scouts see his stock "is on the rise" and has entered "the mid-late lottery range," per O'Connor. Late lottery might be most accurate, since O'Connor, Parrish, Vecenie and Aaron Beard and Brian Mahoney of the Associated Press all mocked Johnson to the Charlotte Hornets at the 14th pick.

While Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman mocked Johnson a few picks later (17th to the Oklahoma City Thunder), he added that Johnson "could wind up earning lottery consideration if he continues to shoot well during workouts."

Yaxel Lendeborg at Risk of Falling?

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The Wolverines were the best team in the country this season, and Yaxel Lendeborg was their best player—plus the Big Ten Player of the Year and a consensus first-team All-American. His NBA argument makes itself.

Well, sort of. Because while his tools and talent have him looking like perhaps the most NBA-ready prospect in this class, he also needs to be that, since he can't possibly offer the same upside as a teenager, as he'll turn 24 ahead of his first NBA action. Maybe there are enough win-now or win-soon teams in the late portions of the lottery that won't worry about that, but there are whispers that even those teams might think twice about an early investment in a player this old.

While Vecenie mocked Lendeborg in his most commonly projected spot (11th overall to the Golden State Warriors), the scribe added that he has "gotten the impressions that there is potential for him to slip out of the lottery." O'Connor also addressed the possibility that Lendeborg "could slip outside of the lottery come draft night" and then went a step further by mocking him 20th to the San Antonio Spurs.

From a purely speculative standpoint, Lendeborg feels like a natural fit for the competitive clubs drafting between the Nos. 11 and 14 spots, so that might be his most realistic range. That said, he's ancient for a prospect, and so much of this process is about long-term protections, so it wouldn't be shocking if he landed lower than everyone expects.