Sunday marked the annual NBA Draft Lottery.
Despite the occasional surprise, the lottery is usually a time when the presumed No. 1 overall pick is assigned to the league’s bottom dwellers.
So no one was shocked when the Washington Wizards were gifted the No. 1 pick in next month’s draft. Washington finished with a 17-65 record, bottoming the NBA entirely.
With a budding core of players like Trae Young, Alex Sarr, Kyshawn George, and others, it seems more than likely that the Wizards would use their first pick on AJ Dybantsa. Dybantsa had a stellar season at BYU, notching 25.5 points per game (leading the nation), 6.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists on a 51% field goal rate.
Currently, the Wizards still have Anthony Davis on their roster, but his future seems anything but certain. NBA Insider, Chris Haynes reported that while Davis and Washington may be in a good place, “I do think there's a good chance that he may end up somewhere else by the time next season starts.”
"I do think there's a good chance that he may end up somewhere else by the time next season starts"@ChrisBHaynes gives the latest on the future of Anthony Davis with the Wizards
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All this points to why getting someone like Dybantsa, a 6-foot-9 forward who can score with ease, may be the right selection, whether with or without Davis on the team next year.
ESPN Mock Draft sends Peterson to Utah
With Dybantsa landing in the nation’s capital, Peterson was pushed to the Utah Jazz, who own the No. 2 pick in the draft, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Woo.
This is a roster fit that makes a lot more sense for Peterson. The former No. 1 player in the class of 2025 would be suiting up beside the likes of Keyonte George, Jaren Jackson and Lauri Markkanen. Each is a 20+ points-per-game player, and with rising star Ace Bailey factored in as well, Peterson could very well be landing on a team that could be challenging for the playoffs in his rookie season.
Playing for the Jazz also gives Peterson the ability to play at the point. In high school, Peterson was praised for his playmaking, but in his one year at KU, he quickly became the primary scorer. While his 20.2 points in 29 minutes per game certainly showed he can score the rock, reports all season long seem to lean on the side of Peterson slotting a lot more into a creator role in the Association.
Of course, things can change on a dime in the NBA, and if the league can come to a much clearer consensus on why Peterson’s cramping issues were so prevalent last season, then maybe rumors of him moving to No. 1 may sprout, but if Peterson does fall to No. 2, he is landing with a strong core.
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