Good Morning, Illini Nation: Keaton Wagler's potential NBA landing spots
· Yahoo Sports
Apr. 10—The end of the NCAA tournament brings a full pivot to the 2026 NBA Draft, with the combine set to run May 10-17 in Chicago.
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Whether Keaton Wagler (and perhaps some of his Illinois teammates) will head to Chicago next month remains to be seen. The Illini freshman has yet to make any announcement about his intentions for next season.
What we do know is Wagler is still projected as a top 10 pick. The post-March Madness mock draft from has Wagler going No. 6 overall to the Atlanta Hawks. An updated draft board from slots Wagler in the No. 5 spot.
The projection of Wagler to the Hawks, of course, is simply based on the current NBA standings. Atlanta is one of several organization participating in rather shameless tanking since the All-Star break. The draft lottery, set for May 10, will dictate the draft order.
So how would you evaluate potential landing spots for Wagler? I ran the lottery simulator 20 times at (a truly lovely site for draftniks and obsessives) and tracked who would wind up with Wagler in those various scenarios:
Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers have a substantial amount invested in Darius Garland, who has two years remaining on his contract, after acquiring him from Cleveland in the James Harden deal in January. Where Wagler would make sense is as a Kris Dunn replacement. The veteran guard will be on an expiring deal next season — a trade asset — and drafting Wagler would let the Clippers get younger without having to throw the Illini All-American in the deep end because of Garland.
Utah Jazz
Utah exercised its club option on Isaiah Collier for the 2026-27 season, but the fact the Jazz included rookie Walter Clayton Jr. in the deal that got them Jaren Jackson Jr. means there's an opening for another point guard to pair next to Keyonte George. That probably won't be Kennedy Chandler, who is on a 10-day contract, so using a lottery pick on Wagler makes some sense.
Memphis Grizzlies
Memphis at least fielded calls about potential Ja Morant trades this season but didn't pull the trigger. Sorting out that situation could dictate the Grizzlies way forward in the draft. While Morant does have two years remaining on his contract before he becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2028-29, getting a replacement on board now would be a smart play. Particularly when the in-house options are Clayton and Scotty Pippen Jr.
Brooklyn Nets
This is the scenario that makes the least sense given the Nets just committed four of its five first-round picks in last year's draft to guards Egor Demin, Nolan Traore, Drake Powell and Ben Saraf. Sound decision making hasn't always been a trademark of Brooklyn's front office in recent history, but using more lottery pick capital on another guard would seem rash.