TITLE: NBA Sends First Green Room Invitations to 14 Prospects for 2026 Draft
SLUG: nba-green-room-invites-2026-draft
CONTENT:
The NBA has issued its initial wave of green room invitations for the 2026 draft, selecting 14 prospects expected to come off the board early, ESPN’s Jeremy Woo reported Tuesday.
The invitees, listed in order of their position on ESPN’s draft board, are:
- AJ Dybantsa (BYU)
- Darryn Peterson (Kansas)
- Cameron Boozer (Duke)
- Caleb Wilson (North Carolina)
- Keaton Wagler (Illinois)
- Darius Acuff (Arkansas)
- Mikel Brown (Louisville)
- Kingston Flemings (Houston)
- Nate Ament (Tennessee)
- Aday Mara (Michigan)
- Brayden Burries (Arizona)
- Karim Lopez (Mexico)
- Labaron Philon (Alabama)
- Christian Anderson (Texas Tech)
According to Woo, Michigan’s Yaxel Lendeborg (No. 12) and Morez Johnson (No. 14) are the only lottery-graded players on ESPN’s board who have not yet received invitations. The league typically distributes green room spots in two or three rounds, suggesting additional invites are still forthcoming.
Green room invitations are based on team feedback. Clubs submit votes on the 25 players they believe will be selected first, and the NBA finalizes its list from those responses. While an invitation usually signals first-round status, it is not a guarantee. In 2024, invitees Kyle Filipowski and Johnny Furphy waited until Day 2 to hear their names. One year later, all 24 players invited for the first night of the 2025 draft were chosen in Round 1, and the league added 12 more invitees for the second round the following day.
The 2026 draft will be held later this month, with Round 1 scheduled for Day 1 and Round 2 taking place the next day.
Source: Hoops Rumors
