{"id":1997962,"date":"2026-06-18T17:34:42","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T14:34:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1997962"},"modified":"2026-06-18T17:34:42","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T14:34:42","slug":"aj-dybantsa-or-darryn-peterson-who-will-the-washington-wizards-draft-at-no-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1997962","title":{"rendered":"AJ Dybantsa or Darryn Peterson: Who will the Washington Wizards draft at No. 1?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"Article_ContentContainer__jBNW3 article-content-container bodytext1\">\n<p>It\u2019s the question NBA fans want answered: Who will the Washington Wizards draft at No. 1: BYU wing AJ Dybantsa or Kansas guard Darryn Peterson?<\/p>\n<p>To break down each prospect\u2019s game and how each would fit with Washington, <em>The Athletic<\/em> has brought together NBA draft analyst Sam Vecenie and Wizards beat writer Josh Robbins for a one-on-one discussion.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad-container\">\n<div class=\"ad-wrapper article-treatment\">\n<div class=\"ad-slug-container\">\n<p class=\"ad-slug\">Advertisement<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"mid1\" data-position=\"mid1\" class=\"ad place-ad\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr>\n<p><strong>Josh Robbins:<\/strong> Sam, you and I have held many discussions before previous drafts, but we\u2019ve never discussed a scenario in which the Wizards held the top pick. I\u2019ve read <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/interactive\/nba-draft-guide-2026\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>The Athletic<\/em>\u2019s 2026 NBA Draft Guide<\/a>. You classify the two players the Wizards are considering at No. 1 \u2014 AJ Dybantsa and Darryn Peterson \u2014 as Tier 1 players, who are potential franchise cornerstones with All-NBA upside.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s start with Dybantsa. What qualities and characteristics make him a potential franchise cornerstone?<\/p>\n<div data-ath-video-stream=\"b0kQJtPd5KtUsjU\">\n<div class=\"VideoHost_Root__QeM_i\">\n<div class=\"VideoHost_VideoWidth__XjNKI VideoHost_Portrait__XBaJC\">\n<div class=\"VideoTitleFrame_VariantB__yI4e6\">\n<div class=\"VideoTitleFrame_TextWrapper__jDZKU\">\n<div class=\"VideoTitleFrame_Title__npf3B\">Why AJ Dybansta is the no. 1 prospect in this year&#8217;s NBA Draft<\/div>\n<div class=\"VideoTitleFrame_Authors__jxyYV\">Sam Vecenie<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"VideoTitleFrame_VideoWrapper__Xgp47\">{&#8220;@context&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/schema.org&#8221;,&#8221;@type&#8221;:&#8221;VideoObject&#8221;,&#8221;@id&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/video\/b0kQJtPd5KtUsjU\/&#8221;,&#8221;url&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/video\/b0kQJtPd5KtUsjU\/&#8221;,&#8221;name&#8221;:&#8221;Why AJ Dybansta is the no. 1 prospect in this year&#8217;s NBA Draft&#8221;,&#8221;uploadDate&#8221;:&#8221;2026-06-09T19:38:53.528Z&#8221;,&#8221;duration&#8221;:&#8221;PT2M12S&#8221;,&#8221;thumbnailUrl&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/cdn-media.theathletic.com\/video-stream\/auto-thumbnail\/b0kQJtPd5KtUsjU\/59yKkTyxO91U.0000000.jpg&#8221;,&#8221;contentUrl&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/video.nyt.com\/athletic\/streams\/b0kQJtPd5KtUsjU\/59yKkTyxO91U\/59yKkTyxO91U.m3u8&#8243;,&#8221;transcript&#8221;:&#8221;BYU&#8217;s AJ Debota has long been seen as a future star. An explosive 6&#8242; 9 wing, he has all the tools required to become an offensive hub in the NBA. And beyond that, DeBa has the exact temperament and personality to become the face of an NBA franchise. Here&#8217;s why the NBA sees AJ Debota as a future all NBA player. Simply put, DeBanta has better physical tools entering the NBA than any wing I&#8217;ve seen. in a while. His ability to play with elite bend mixed with explosiveness allows him to consistently get into the teeth of the defense as a straight-line driver. He moves people with bumps around the rim and has real counters with his gathers and footwork, allowing him to live at the foul line. He&#8217;s also a terrific mid-range shooter in terms of having a counter to the defense. There&#8217;s simply just not a better blend of size, power, length, athleticism, body control, skill in This class, scoring 25.5 points per game while shooting 51% from the field, 33% from 3, and 77% from the line. Debosa is a historically productive scorer for his age in college basketball. Here are a couple of plays that show why. So on this first one, Debosa is gonna catch on the empty side of the court in a mismatch with Baylor center Cayden Powell. Watch how he sets him up with a little hesitation and then boom. It&#8217;s gonna hit him with a quick crossover to go baseline. He&#8217;s going to use that shoulder. To bump him out of the way and then he&#8217;s going to finish through contact for an and one. Then on this one, watch him hit just a little stutter rip here against Arizona&#8217;s Anthony Del Orso, blow by him, see center Toby Iwaka rotate over and help, and then just calmly Eurostep around for the easy lay-in. This next one, Debosa, he&#8217;s going to set a little ghost screen for Rob Wright and slip to the wing where he catches, pump fakes, and gets a killer defender in Iowa State&#8217;s Killian Torre in the air. He&#8217;s going to jump. Stop after he attacks the clothes out, hits a little mid-range jumper, just really sweet as a counter there. Debosa projects to me as a bigger Jalen Brown. There are some questions you&#8217;ll need to answer in terms of his handle, his passing, his off-ball defense, things that Brown also had to answer coming out of Cal about a decade ago. But at the end of the day, Debosa is too good of a shot creator and athlete to fail at the next level. Expecting him to be a star very early in his NBA career.&#8221;,&#8221;ineligibleRegion&#8221;:[&#8220;BI&#8221;,&#8221;BY&#8221;,&#8221;CD&#8221;,&#8221;CF&#8221;,&#8221;CU&#8221;,&#8221;IQ&#8221;,&#8221;IR&#8221;,&#8221;KP&#8221;,&#8221;LB&#8221;,&#8221;LY&#8221;,&#8221;ML&#8221;,&#8221;NI&#8221;,&#8221;RU&#8221;,&#8221;SD&#8221;,&#8221;SO&#8221;,&#8221;SS&#8221;,&#8221;SY&#8221;,&#8221;UA&#8221;,&#8221;VE&#8221;,&#8221;YE&#8221;,&#8221;ZW&#8221;],&#8221;publisher&#8221;:{&#8220;@type&#8221;:&#8221;NewsMediaOrganization&#8221;,&#8221;@id&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/#publisher&#8221;,&#8221;name&#8221;:&#8221;The Athletic&#8221;,&#8221;url&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/&#8221;,&#8221;foundingDate&#8221;:&#8221;2016-01-25&#8243;,&#8221;logo&#8221;:{&#8220;@type&#8221;:&#8221;ImageObject&#8221;,&#8221;@id&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/theathletic.com\/app\/themes\/athletic\/assets\/img\/the-athletic-wordmark-black.png&#8221;,&#8221;url&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/theathletic.com\/app\/themes\/athletic\/assets\/img\/the-athletic-wordmark-black.png&#8221;,&#8221;contentUrl&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/theathletic.com\/app\/themes\/athletic\/assets\/img\/the-athletic-wordmark-black.png&#8221;,&#8221;creditText&#8221;:&#8221;The Athletic&#8221;,&#8221;height&#8221;:&#8221;60&#8243;,&#8221;width&#8221;:&#8221;435&#8243;},&#8221;publishingPrinciples&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/edit-guidelines\/&#8221;,&#8221;sameAs&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Athletic&#8221;},&#8221;author&#8221;:[{&#8220;@type&#8221;:&#8221;Person&#8221;,&#8221;name&#8221;:&#8221;Sam Vecenie&#8221;}]}<\/p>\n<div class=\"AspectRatioBox_root__AKv5b\" style=\"aspect-ratio:9 \/ 16;max-height:min(100%)\">\n<div class=\"AspectRatioBox_inner__86C_2\" style=\"aspect-ratio:9 \/ 16\">\n<div class=\"VideoStreamPlayer_GridStack__2H0p2\"><video preload=\"none\"><\/video><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Sam Vecenie:<\/strong> First and foremost, he\u2019s a prolific scorer. He averaged 25.5 points as a teenage college freshman while shooting 51 percent from the field, 33 percent from 3 and 77.4 percent from the line. Only two other players have done that. Moreover, Dybantsa creates high-value shots. He got to the line 8.5 times per game this year and took more free throws than anyone else in the country. On top of that, he averaged over five attempts at the rim per game in half-court settings, one of the best marks in the country for a high-major perimeter player. He also makes those shots efficiently and effectively with room for growth and improvement as he ages.<\/p>\n<p>On top of that, he also has a counter as a midrange shooter. He drilled 50.7 percent of his midrange jumpers between 10 and 18 feet this season, a mark that would be among the best in the NBA. He also displayed passing ability, dishing out nearly five assists per game over his final 10 games of the year, when his teammate at BYU, Richie Saunders, went down with an ACL tear. Dybantsa is starting to see the court better, and showed growth as a playmaker for others in a way that should allow him to be successful as an on-ball offensive hub in the NBA.<\/p>\n<p>Essentially, Dybantsa is a dynamic athlete at 6 feet 9 who plays with bend and explosiveness, creates the best shots that you can create on an NBA court and is getting better in a hurry. It\u2019s an easy translation to the NBA offensively that should only get easier when he has more room to operate in the open court with better spacing around him. Then, throw in that he\u2019s a charismatic personality who has superstar qualities that should allow Washington, D.C., to get behind him, and it\u2019s easy to see why Dybantsa has a chance to be a franchise cornerstone.<\/p>\n<p>@font-face{font-family:nyt-franklin;src:url(https:\/\/g1.nyt.com\/fonts\/family\/franklin\/franklin-normal-500.0f4aea3d462cdb64748629efcbbf36bc.woff2) format(&#8220;woff2&#8221;),url(https:\/\/g1.nyt.com\/fonts\/family\/franklin\/franklin-normal-500.cb85480c30b6ca5f53f673993211036f.woff) format(&#8220;woff&#8221;),url(https:\/\/g1.nyt.com\/fonts\/family\/franklin\/franklin-normal-500.9061b25032eb73a747c2edf738888891.ttf) format(&#8220;truetype&#8221;);font-style:normal;font-weight:500;font-display:swap}<br \/>\n@font-face{font-family:nyt-franklin;src:url(https:\/\/g1.nyt.com\/fonts\/family\/franklin\/franklin-normal-700.91eaf6b5642463af4091160b4bbfdfcb.woff2) 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439px){background-color:transparent}.player-card__photo.svelte-1u319qg{height:100%;width:auto;overflow:hidden;img.svelte-1u319qg{width:100%;height:58px;object-fit:cover;transform:translateY(2%) scale(1.45);transform-origin:top center;object-position:top center;@media (min-width: 379px){transform:translateY(0) scale(1.5)}@media (min-width: 499px){transform:translateY(2%) scale(1.5)}@media (min-width: 600px){transform:translateY(3%) scale(1.3)}}}}}}.recirc-link.svelte-1u319qg{display:inline-block;margin-top:10px;font-size:13px;font-family:var(&#8211;g-franklin);color:var(&#8211;g-color-grays-80);text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-underline-offset:2px;font-weight:600;@media (min-width: 379px){font-size:14px}@media (min-width: 720px){font-size:16px;margin-top:14px}}@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark){.native-mobile{.player-card.svelte-1u319qg{background-color:var(&#8211;g-color-grays-70);&#8211;g-player-photo-bg-color: var(&#8211;g-color-grays-70)}.player-card__tagline.svelte-1u319qg{color:var(&#8211;g-color-grays-20)!important}.player-card__player-info.svelte-1u319qg,.player-card__player-info.svelte-1u319qg .player-name-and-school.svelte-1u319qg,.player-card__player-info.svelte-1u319qg .player-school.svelte-1u319qg,.recirc-link.svelte-1u319qg{color:var(&#8211;g-color-grays-10)!important}}}<\/p>\n<div id=\"g-bk-VRlZQ16v5iHfRA\" class=\"birdkit-body g-bk-VRlZQ16v5iHfRA g-dark-mode-incompatible\" data-preview-slug=\"bk-VRlZQ16v5iHfRA\" data-birdkit-hydrate=\"04fc301e43285214\">\n<div class=\"tk-embed-wrapper-class graphics-container-impressions fp-ignore svelte-1ma8250\" data-module-label=\"nba_draft_guide_2026\" data-module-type=\"embed\" data-module-context=\"nba_draft_guide_2026\" data-module-id=\"player_card\"><a class=\"graphic-wrapper-link svelte-1ma8250\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/interactive\/nba-draft-guide-2026\/player\/aj-dybantsa-byu-wing\/\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"player-card svelte-1u319qg\">\n<div class=\"player-card__player-info svelte-1u319qg\">\n<div class=\"content-wrapper svelte-1u319qg\">\n<div class=\"position-rank-container svelte-1u319qg\"><span class=\"position-rank-badge svelte-j9csdc\"><span class=\"position-rank-badge__position svelte-j9csdc\">Overall<\/span> <span class=\"position-rank-badge__rank svelte-j9csdc\">1<\/span><\/span> <span class=\"position-rank-badge svelte-j9csdc\"><span class=\"position-rank-badge__position svelte-j9csdc\">Wing<\/span> <span class=\"position-rank-badge__rank svelte-j9csdc\">1<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<p> <span class=\"player-name-and-school svelte-1u319qg\"><span class=\"player-name svelte-1u319qg\"><span class=\"player-name-text\">AJ Dybantsa<\/span><\/span> <span class=\"player-school svelte-1u319qg\">BYU<\/span><\/span> <\/p>\n<p class=\"player-card__tagline svelte-1u319qg\">Elite tools for a wing; could easily become a top-10 NBA player.<\/p>\n<p> <span class=\"recirc-link svelte-1u319qg\">Read full profile \u203a<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"player-card__photo-container svelte-1u319qg\">\n<div class=\"player-card__photo svelte-1u319qg\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/graphics-cdn.theathletic.com\/nba-draft-guide-2026\/images\/aj-dybantsa-byu-wing-profile.png\" alt=\"Photo of AJ Dybantsa BYU\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"svelte-1u319qg\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>Robbins:<\/strong> At this stage in his development, what areas of his game could prevent him from reaching his upside?<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad-container\">\n<div class=\"ad-wrapper article-treatment\">\n<div class=\"ad-slug-container\">\n<p class=\"ad-slug\">Advertisement<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"mid2\" data-position=\"mid2\" class=\"ad place-ad\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Vecenie:<\/strong> Three areas stick out. First, Dybantsa\u2019s handle can be a bit loose. He is awesome in a straight line when he has space to get downhill. But his ball control is a bit inconsistent if the defender can keep his chest in front of him. He doesn\u2019t always separate to get to anything other than a heavily contested pull-up. His handle can also be a bit robotic. He loses control of it at times and gets loose with his crossovers. He needs to get stronger on the ball, which I do think will happen as he ages.<\/p>\n<p>Second, Dybantsa is an improving shooter, but not yet an elite one in the way superstars need to be. He made 30.1 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3s this season, per Synergy, and was an up-and-down pull-up shooter prior to this season.<\/p>\n<p>Third, Dybantsa\u2019s defense was hit or miss this year. His overall awareness and ability to read and react quickly to what\u2019s happening around him seemed to be a step slow. He has some issues mapping the court at times when he\u2019s away from the ball and understanding where he needs to rotate to quickly. It\u2019s why his block numbers are not particularly strong despite him being this large, and why you could see him be a touch late on tape to what was happening around him on defense.<\/p>\n<p>How would he fit with the Wizards?<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7373340\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\">\n<div class=\"wp-caption-image-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-7373340 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/athletic\/uploads\/wp\/2026\/06\/18114340\/USATSI_28203656.jpg\" alt width=\"2042\" height=\"1361\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-credits\">\n<div class=\"inline-credits-container\">\n      <span class=\"credits-text\">AJ Dybantsa is an elite scorer who excelled at generating free-throw attempts during his lone college season. (Chris Jones \/ Imagn Images)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Robbins:<\/strong> In terms of fit, there\u2019s the macro and the micro.<\/p>\n<p>The macro is this: Dybantsa would immediately be the most talented player in the Wizards\u2019 young nucleus and the most likely among the young players to develop into a franchise cornerstone. As you know, a team cannot win big in the NBA without a cornerstone-level talent. At this stage of the Wizards\u2019 build, the macro is, by far, the most important consideration. Bring aboard the talent first, and then focus later on the roster fit. That would be my approach.<\/p>\n<p>In terms of a more roster-specific, micro view, the Wizards already have a <em>lot<\/em> of wings, and Dybantsa would add one more to the mix, albeit the most talented one of them all.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad-container\">\n<div class=\"ad-wrapper article-treatment\">\n<div class=\"ad-slug-container\">\n<p class=\"ad-slug\">Advertisement<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"mid3\" data-position=\"mid3\" class=\"ad place-ad\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>I would argue that the last two NBA postseasons have shown the value of having a multitude of high-level wings on a roster. But absent some kind of consolidation trade this offseason, the wings will face a crunch for playing time that didn\u2019t exist in prior years. Kyshawn George likely wouldn\u2019t face a reduction in playing time. But players lower on the depth chart, such as Will Riley, Justin Champagnie and Cam Whitmore, likely would find minutes more difficult to come by. Perhaps Tre Johnson, too.<\/p>\n<p>What\u2019s your opinion of Darryn Peterson? What qualities and characteristics make him a potential franchise cornerstone?<\/p>\n<div data-ath-video-stream=\"Ko2NKLLBQN1CTbw\">\n<div class=\"VideoHost_Root__QeM_i\">\n<div class=\"VideoHost_VideoWidth__XjNKI VideoHost_Portrait__XBaJC\">\n<div class=\"VideoTitleFrame_VariantB__yI4e6\">\n<div class=\"VideoTitleFrame_TextWrapper__jDZKU\">\n<div class=\"VideoTitleFrame_Title__npf3B\">Why Darryn Peterson&#8217;s best basketball is still ahead of him<\/div>\n<div class=\"VideoTitleFrame_Authors__jxyYV\">Sam Vecenie<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"VideoTitleFrame_VideoWrapper__Xgp47\">{&#8220;@context&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/schema.org&#8221;,&#8221;@type&#8221;:&#8221;VideoObject&#8221;,&#8221;@id&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/video\/Ko2NKLLBQN1CTbw\/&#8221;,&#8221;url&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/video\/Ko2NKLLBQN1CTbw\/&#8221;,&#8221;name&#8221;:&#8221;Why Darryn Peterson&#8217;s best basketball is still ahead of him&#8221;,&#8221;description&#8221;:&#8221;Sam Vecenie breaks down why Darryn Peterson remains one of the most talented guard prospects of the last decade, showcasing the three-level scoring ability and shot creation that make him a potential NBA star.&#8221;,&#8221;uploadDate&#8221;:&#8221;2026-06-09T20:03:50.566Z&#8221;,&#8221;duration&#8221;:&#8221;PT2M3S&#8221;,&#8221;thumbnailUrl&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/cdn-media.theathletic.com\/video-stream\/auto-thumbnail\/Ko2NKLLBQN1CTbw\/4E1casqnVYnK.0000000.jpg&#8221;,&#8221;contentUrl&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/video.nyt.com\/athletic\/streams\/Ko2NKLLBQN1CTbw\/4E1casqnVYnK\/4E1casqnVYnK.m3u8&#8243;,&#8221;transcript&#8221;:&#8221;Kansas&#8217;s Darren Peterson had a strange freshman year, but don&#8217;t let that fool you. It&#8217;s still one of the elite guard prospects to enter the NBA over the last decade. Here&#8217;s why Peterson is poised to be one of the truly elite scoring guards across the NBA through his prime. Peterson was as complete a guard as I&#8217;d seen by the time his high school career ended, showcasing the ability to score from all three levels, make plays for his teammates out of ball screens. He defended when he needed to lock in, but then he got to Kansas. And it felt like we just never got to see him totally at 100%. Even while dealing with an early-season hamstring strain and persistent cramping issues throughout the season, though, Peterson still averaged 20 points per game as a freshman in the Big 12, showcasing his elite-level shot-making ability. Here are a few examples of why Peterson has the potential to be such an amazing three-level scorer. On this one, Peterson gets to show off his movement without the ball. You see him relocate off of a killer defender in Ivan Karchenkov, pump fake, and hit a 1. relocation 3 with pure mechanics. Then here, you&#8217;ll see the obscene shot-making potential where Peterson&#8217;s gonna hang dribble and do a between the legs crossover, rise up wrong-footed for the 3 with seconds left in the first half, realign in midair, and he&#8217;s gonna drill a 3 there. Then on this one, he catches a ball screen to get a switch, hits a quick between the legs crossover, plays through the bump, drives, pump fakes, gets to the middle for a nice little mid-range jumper to showcase that in-between game, and then in this one, he catches a crossover, he takes a screen, splits the coverage really quickly, goes up off of 2 ft through Xavier Edmonds, takes the contact, finishes with the offhand lefty layup. Peterson&#8217;s suddenness and the herky-jerky style of his handle blended with real footwork and polish kind of reminds me of Donovan Mitchell just in terms of the body movements. That&#8217;s the kind of elite-level scoring guard that I think we&#8217;re talking about with Peterson, assuming that he gets over these hamstring and cramping issues from this season.&#8221;,&#8221;ineligibleRegion&#8221;:[&#8220;BI&#8221;,&#8221;BY&#8221;,&#8221;CD&#8221;,&#8221;CF&#8221;,&#8221;CU&#8221;,&#8221;IQ&#8221;,&#8221;IR&#8221;,&#8221;KP&#8221;,&#8221;LB&#8221;,&#8221;LY&#8221;,&#8221;ML&#8221;,&#8221;NI&#8221;,&#8221;RU&#8221;,&#8221;SD&#8221;,&#8221;SO&#8221;,&#8221;SS&#8221;,&#8221;SY&#8221;,&#8221;UA&#8221;,&#8221;VE&#8221;,&#8221;YE&#8221;,&#8221;ZW&#8221;],&#8221;publisher&#8221;:{&#8220;@type&#8221;:&#8221;NewsMediaOrganization&#8221;,&#8221;@id&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/#publisher&#8221;,&#8221;name&#8221;:&#8221;The Athletic&#8221;,&#8221;url&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/&#8221;,&#8221;foundingDate&#8221;:&#8221;2016-01-25&#8243;,&#8221;logo&#8221;:{&#8220;@type&#8221;:&#8221;ImageObject&#8221;,&#8221;@id&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/theathletic.com\/app\/themes\/athletic\/assets\/img\/the-athletic-wordmark-black.png&#8221;,&#8221;url&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/theathletic.com\/app\/themes\/athletic\/assets\/img\/the-athletic-wordmark-black.png&#8221;,&#8221;contentUrl&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/theathletic.com\/app\/themes\/athletic\/assets\/img\/the-athletic-wordmark-black.png&#8221;,&#8221;creditText&#8221;:&#8221;The Athletic&#8221;,&#8221;height&#8221;:&#8221;60&#8243;,&#8221;width&#8221;:&#8221;435&#8243;},&#8221;publishingPrinciples&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/edit-guidelines\/&#8221;,&#8221;sameAs&#8221;:&#8221;https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Athletic&#8221;},&#8221;author&#8221;:[{&#8220;@type&#8221;:&#8221;Person&#8221;,&#8221;name&#8221;:&#8221;Sam Vecenie&#8221;}]}<\/p>\n<div class=\"AspectRatioBox_root__AKv5b\" style=\"aspect-ratio:9 \/ 16;max-height:min(100%)\">\n<div class=\"AspectRatioBox_inner__86C_2\" style=\"aspect-ratio:9 \/ 16\">\n<div class=\"VideoStreamPlayer_GridStack__2H0p2\"><video preload=\"none\"><\/video><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Vecenie:<\/strong> Peterson is also a wildly dynamic scorer because of his shooting ability. Few guys are this elite as shot-makers at this age. He is a good ballhandler who counters defenders well with herky-jerky actions that are hard to wall up against. He can keep his dribble alive and continue to threaten defenses with his creativity out of ball screens. Then, he\u2019s a lights-out shooter. He drilled 47.7 percent of his 3s off the catch this season at Kansas, has a strong in-between game and can also drill pull-up 3s behind screens, in transition, or off relocations.<\/p>\n<p>Peterson also didn\u2019t get a chance to showcase his on-ball skill at Kansas this year because of the team structure and his cramping issues. In high school, he was a seriously impressive ball-screen playmaker for his teammates. He has finally started reading the second and third levels of defenses and attacking accordingly. Because he slowed down how he plays, he opened up passing angles everywhere and had the vision to hit them.<\/p>\n<p id=\"article-pickem\">\n<p>There is a case that Peterson is the most well-rounded overall offensive player in the class if you believe what you saw in high school is true, and what you saw in college was more because of his struggles with cramping. He\u2019s also regarded as a high-level competitor, despite what happened with his injury issues forcing him to sit at times this year at Kansas. He\u2019s quiet and introverted as a human, but he wants to go out there and take the opponent\u2019s soul when he\u2019s on the court.<\/p>\n<div id=\"inline-graphic\">\n<p>        a.showcase-link-container {<br \/>\n  display: flex;<br \/>\n  gap: 20px;<br \/>\n  flex-direction: column;<br \/>\n  align-items: center;<br \/>\n  padding: 20px 0px;<br \/>\n  border-top: 1px solid rgba(150, 150, 147, 0.4);<br \/>\n  border-bottom: 1px solid rgba(150, 150, 147, 0.4);<br \/>\n  text-decoration: none;<br \/>\n  color: #121212;<br \/>\n  cursor: pointer;<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link {<br \/>\n    font-family: nyt-franklin;<br \/>\n    font-size: 14px;<br \/>\n    font-style: normal;<br \/>\n    font-weight: 700;<br \/>\n    line-height: 13.8px;<br \/>\n    letter-spacing: 1.1px;<br \/>\n    text-transform: uppercase;<br \/>\n  }<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link-image {<br \/>\n    border-radius: 8px;<br \/>\n    object-fit: cover;<br \/>\n    width: 200px;<br \/>\n    height: 150px;<br \/>\n    margin: 0px;<br \/>\n    @media (max-width: 600px) {<br \/>\n      width: 120px;<br \/>\n      height: 120px;<br \/>\n    }<br \/>\n  }<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link-inner-content {<br \/>\n    display: flex;<br \/>\n    flex-direction: row;<br \/>\n    gap: 16px;<br \/>\n    width: 100%;<br \/>\n  }<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link-text-content {<br \/>\n    display: flex;<br \/>\n    flex-direction: column;<br \/>\n    gap: 20px;<br \/>\n    justify-content: center;<br \/>\n    @media (max-width: 600px) {<br \/>\n      gap: 8px;<br \/>\n    }<br \/>\n  }<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link-title {<br \/>\n    font-family: nyt-cheltenham;<br \/>\n    font-size: 24px;<br \/>\n    font-style: normal;<br \/>\n    font-weight: 500;<br \/>\n    line-height: 120%; 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img.removeAttribute(&#8216;onclick&#8217;));<\/p>\n<p>        <a id=\"showcase-link-7263567\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/7263567\/2026\/05\/08\/darryn-peterson-cramping-creatine-kansas\/\" class=\"showcase-link-container in-content-module-link testbed-shortcode\" data-shortcode-id=\"101\" data-shortcode-string=\"showcase-link\" data-content-id=\"7263567\" data-content-post-type=\"headline\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"showcase-link\">How Did We Get Here?<\/div>\n<div class=\"showcase-link-inner-content\">\n            <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/athletic\/uploads\/wp\/2026\/05\/08112451\/DarrynPetersoncramps-1024x683.jpg?width=400&amp;quality=70\" alt=\"Darryn Peterson blames cramping issues at Kansas on high doses of creatine\" class=\"showcase-link-image\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"showcase-link-text-content\">\n<div class=\"showcase-link-title\">\n                  Darryn Peterson blames cramping issues at Kansas on high doses of creatine\n              <\/div>\n<div class=\"showcase-link-excerpt\">\n                  Peterson, who began cramping before last season, addressed what he said caused the issue for the first time in an ESPN interview.\n              <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>        <\/a><\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>Robbins:<\/strong> What areas to his game, as it stands now, could stop him from hitting his upside?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Vecenie:<\/strong> For me, it\u2019s determining how often he\u2019s able to get to the rim consistently. He was more capable of doing this in high school than we saw in college, but his college situation and the cramping issues clearly created some problems. He had absolutely no space to attack because of a lack of shooting around him at Kansas, and often was forced to play off the ball next to Melvin Council. But it is at least a question that teams have as to whether or not he can consistently create the easiest shots on the court.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad-container\">\n<div class=\"ad-wrapper article-treatment\">\n<div class=\"ad-slug-container\">\n<p class=\"ad-slug\">Advertisement<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"mid4\" data-position=\"mid4\" class=\"ad place-ad\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>I will at least take this moment to note here that while I don\u2019t think of this as a weakness, it\u2019s worth discussing that he\u2019s not the loudest guy in the room. He describes himself as an introvert and might not be quite the leader that Michael Winger has noted publicly that the organization seems to want in this pick. Again, I can\u2019t emphasize this enough: Anyone who has spent time around Peterson regards him as being <em>highly<\/em> competitive. He wants to go out there and destroy his competition. But think of him more like a Tre Johnson-type in terms of personality as opposed to someone who is an extroverted, more traditional leader. Both Peterson and Johnson are exceptional workers who go about their jobs with a high degree of professionalism. But they\u2019re both quiet by nature.<\/p>\n<p>How do you think Peterson would fit in Washington, Josh?<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7373338\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\">\n<div class=\"wp-caption-image-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-7373338 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/athletic\/uploads\/wp\/2026\/06\/18114334\/USATSI_28365719-scaled.jpg\" alt width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-credits\">\n<div class=\"inline-credits-container\">\n      <span class=\"credits-text\">Darryn Peterson converted 47.7 percent of his 3s off the catch during his lone season at Kansas. (Aryanna Frank \/ Imagn Images)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Robbins:<\/strong> A lot of what I said about Dybantsa\u2019s fit applies here. Peterson instantly would slot in as the Wizards\u2019 most talented young player and their franchise cornerstone.<\/p>\n<p>As a combo guard and with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/7372865\/2026\/06\/18\/trae-young-wizards-free-agent-player-option-nba\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Trae Young likely to remain with the team<\/a> as its starting point guard, it would seem that the bulk of Peterson\u2019s minutes would come in a two-guard, off-the-ball role. And that, in turn, could have downstream playing-time impacts on combo guard Bub Carrington and on wings such as Johnson.<\/p>\n<p>How do you think the presence of Young and Anthony Davis will impact either Dybantsa\u2019s early development or Peterson\u2019s early development?<\/p>\n<p>@font-face{font-family:nyt-franklin;src:url(https:\/\/g1.nyt.com\/fonts\/family\/franklin\/franklin-normal-500.0f4aea3d462cdb64748629efcbbf36bc.woff2) format(&#8220;woff2&#8221;),url(https:\/\/g1.nyt.com\/fonts\/family\/franklin\/franklin-normal-500.cb85480c30b6ca5f53f673993211036f.woff) format(&#8220;woff&#8221;),url(https:\/\/g1.nyt.com\/fonts\/family\/franklin\/franklin-normal-500.9061b25032eb73a747c2edf738888891.ttf) format(&#8220;truetype&#8221;);font-style:normal;font-weight:500;font-display:swap}<br \/>\n@font-face{font-family:nyt-franklin;src:url(https:\/\/g1.nyt.com\/fonts\/family\/franklin\/franklin-normal-700.91eaf6b5642463af4091160b4bbfdfcb.woff2) 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439px){background-color:transparent}.player-card__photo.svelte-1u319qg{height:100%;width:auto;overflow:hidden;img.svelte-1u319qg{width:100%;height:58px;object-fit:cover;transform:translateY(2%) scale(1.45);transform-origin:top center;object-position:top center;@media (min-width: 379px){transform:translateY(0) scale(1.5)}@media (min-width: 499px){transform:translateY(2%) scale(1.5)}@media (min-width: 600px){transform:translateY(3%) scale(1.3)}}}}}}.recirc-link.svelte-1u319qg{display:inline-block;margin-top:10px;font-size:13px;font-family:var(&#8211;g-franklin);color:var(&#8211;g-color-grays-80);text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-underline-offset:2px;font-weight:600;@media (min-width: 379px){font-size:14px}@media (min-width: 720px){font-size:16px;margin-top:14px}}@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark){.native-mobile{.player-card.svelte-1u319qg{background-color:var(&#8211;g-color-grays-70);&#8211;g-player-photo-bg-color: var(&#8211;g-color-grays-70)}.player-card__tagline.svelte-1u319qg{color:var(&#8211;g-color-grays-20)!important}.player-card__player-info.svelte-1u319qg,.player-card__player-info.svelte-1u319qg .player-name-and-school.svelte-1u319qg,.player-card__player-info.svelte-1u319qg .player-school.svelte-1u319qg,.recirc-link.svelte-1u319qg{color:var(&#8211;g-color-grays-10)!important}}}<\/p>\n<div id=\"g-bk-VRlZQ16v5iHfRA\" class=\"birdkit-body g-bk-VRlZQ16v5iHfRA g-dark-mode-incompatible\" data-preview-slug=\"bk-VRlZQ16v5iHfRA\" data-birdkit-hydrate=\"dcbc24e285e6cba8\">\n<div class=\"tk-embed-wrapper-class graphics-container-impressions fp-ignore svelte-1ma8250\" data-module-label=\"nba_draft_guide_2026\" data-module-type=\"embed\" data-module-context=\"nba_draft_guide_2026\" data-module-id=\"player_card\"><a class=\"graphic-wrapper-link svelte-1ma8250\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/interactive\/nba-draft-guide-2026\/player\/darryn-peterson-kansas-guard\/\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"player-card svelte-1u319qg\">\n<div class=\"player-card__player-info svelte-1u319qg\">\n<div class=\"content-wrapper svelte-1u319qg\">\n<div class=\"position-rank-container svelte-1u319qg\"><span class=\"position-rank-badge svelte-j9csdc\"><span class=\"position-rank-badge__position svelte-j9csdc\">Overall<\/span> <span class=\"position-rank-badge__rank svelte-j9csdc\">3<\/span><\/span> <span class=\"position-rank-badge svelte-j9csdc\"><span class=\"position-rank-badge__position svelte-j9csdc\">Guard<\/span> <span class=\"position-rank-badge__rank svelte-j9csdc\">1<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<p> <span class=\"player-name-and-school svelte-1u319qg\"><span class=\"player-name svelte-1u319qg\"><span class=\"player-name-text\">Darryn Peterson<\/span><\/span> <span class=\"player-school svelte-1u319qg\">Kansas<\/span><\/span> <\/p>\n<p class=\"player-card__tagline svelte-1u319qg\">An elite shooter with All-NBA scoring guard upside, despite his strange Kansas year.<\/p>\n<p> <span class=\"recirc-link svelte-1u319qg\">Read full profile \u203a<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"player-card__photo-container svelte-1u319qg\">\n<div class=\"player-card__photo svelte-1u319qg\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/graphics-cdn.theathletic.com\/nba-draft-guide-2026\/images\/darryn-peterson-kansas-guard-profile.png\" alt=\"Photo of Darryn Peterson Kansas\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"svelte-1u319qg\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>Vecenie:<\/strong> Yeah, it\u2019s a great question. Young will at least help the team create easier shots due to his ability to organize the offense. He\u2019s a dynamic ball-screen player who diverts a lot of defensive attention his way. But there are just a <em>lot<\/em> of developmental reps that need to go around still in Washington, and Young can be a player who tends to dribble the ball an awful lot. Can the team find the reps for all of Dybantsa or Peterson on top of getting more on-ball opportunities for guys like George, Riley and Johnson, all of whom have earned those chances in some respect? Let alone also Alex Sarr, although Sarr will just naturally get some in ball-screen situations with Young.<\/p>\n<p>I honestly don\u2019t know what to make of the Davis component given that he\u2019s set up to likely start at the four next to Sarr at the five, something that hasn\u2019t been quite as successful in recent years despite Davis\u2019 desire to play more at that position because of the physical wear and tear on his body. I worry about what the team\u2019s spacing will look like if Sarr\u2019s jump shot doesn\u2019t take a big leap this season. The team might be best off staggering Davis\u2019 and Sarr\u2019s minutes aggressively in order to get the requisite spacing out there that they need in order to give some of these younger players space to operate.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Robbins:<\/strong> Those are all legit potential issues.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad-container\">\n<div class=\"ad-wrapper article-treatment\">\n<div class=\"ad-slug-container\">\n<p class=\"ad-slug\">Advertisement<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"mid5\" data-position=\"mid5\" class=\"ad place-ad\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>I think the bigger picture is that Young and Davis should take at least some of the pressure off the incoming rookie, whether he\u2019s Dybantsa or Peterson, as well as the rest of the young nucleus. The young core players won\u2019t have to win games on their own; Young and Davis are the leaders in the short term, and I think that\u2019s valuable for the youngsters.<\/p>\n<p>All right, let\u2019s get to the bottom line: Who do you think the Wizards should pick at No. 1 and who do you think they will pick?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Vecenie:<\/strong> I would take Dybantsa and I think in the end that will be their pick. He just ticks more of the boxes of what the organization seems to want from a player in this No. 1 overall pick slot. It feels like they want star quality, and while Peterson is certainly a star-level talent, he doesn\u2019t have the same gravitas as Dybantsa as a franchise cornerstone. Dybantsa wants all of the pressure that comes with being a No. 1 overall pick. He wants that placed on his shoulders and has the kind of temperament that will have no issues accepting it.<\/p>\n<p>On top of that, for me, the thing that this Washington team needs more than anything within its young core is someone who can pressure the rim. Sarr is more of a perimeter-based big who takes a larger number of floaters around the basket than most centers. George and Johnson can struggle to get all the way to the rim. Young is much more adept at using his floater game and has increasingly drawn fear fouls over the last four years of his career. Davis was better at it in Los Angeles, but this past year in Dallas was much less inclined to put his body in harm\u2019s way.<\/p>\n<p>Dybantsa is a fearless driver who will create easier shots because of his athleticism and power as a driver. That\u2019s the type of player who makes the most sense within this incredibly fun core of young players the Wizards have built.<\/p>\n<div id=\"inline-graphic\">\n<p>        a.showcase-link-container {<br \/>\n  display: flex;<br \/>\n  gap: 20px;<br \/>\n  flex-direction: column;<br \/>\n  align-items: center;<br \/>\n  padding: 20px 0px;<br \/>\n  border-top: 1px solid rgba(150, 150, 147, 0.4);<br \/>\n  border-bottom: 1px solid rgba(150, 150, 147, 0.4);<br \/>\n  text-decoration: none;<br \/>\n  color: #121212;<br \/>\n  cursor: pointer;<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link {<br \/>\n    font-family: nyt-franklin;<br \/>\n    font-size: 14px;<br \/>\n    font-style: normal;<br \/>\n    font-weight: 700;<br \/>\n    line-height: 13.8px;<br \/>\n    letter-spacing: 1.1px;<br \/>\n    text-transform: uppercase;<br \/>\n  }<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link-image {<br \/>\n    border-radius: 8px;<br \/>\n    object-fit: cover;<br \/>\n    width: 200px;<br \/>\n    height: 150px;<br \/>\n    margin: 0px;<br \/>\n    @media (max-width: 600px) {<br \/>\n      width: 120px;<br \/>\n      height: 120px;<br \/>\n    }<br \/>\n  }<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link-inner-content {<br \/>\n    display: flex;<br \/>\n    flex-direction: row;<br \/>\n    gap: 16px;<br \/>\n    width: 100%;<br \/>\n  }<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link-text-content {<br \/>\n    display: flex;<br \/>\n    flex-direction: column;<br \/>\n    gap: 20px;<br \/>\n    justify-content: center;<br \/>\n    @media (max-width: 600px) {<br \/>\n      gap: 8px;<br \/>\n    }<br \/>\n  }<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link-title {<br \/>\n    font-family: nyt-cheltenham;<br \/>\n    font-size: 24px;<br \/>\n    font-style: normal;<br \/>\n    font-weight: 500;<br \/>\n    line-height: 120%; \/* 24px *\/<br \/>\n    letter-spacing: 0.01px;<br \/>\n    text-overflow: ellipsis;<br \/>\n    overflow: hidden;<br \/>\n    display: -webkit-box;<br \/>\n    -webkit-box-orient: vertical;<br \/>\n    -webkit-line-clamp: 3;<br \/>\n    @media (max-width: 600px) {<br \/>\n      font-size: 16px;<br \/>\n    }<br \/>\n  }<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link-excerpt {<br \/>\n    font-family: nyt-imperial;<br \/>\n    font-size: 16px;<br \/>\n    font-style: normal;<br \/>\n    font-weight: 400;<br \/>\n    line-height: 139%; \/* 19.46px *\/<br \/>\n    color: #323232;<br \/>\n    text-overflow: ellipsis;<br \/>\n    overflow: hidden;<br \/>\n    display: -webkit-box;<br \/>\n    -webkit-box-orient: vertical;<br \/>\n    -webkit-line-clamp: 4;<br \/>\n    @media (max-width: 600px) {<br \/>\n      font-size: 12px;<br \/>\n      line-height: 121%;<br \/>\n    }<br \/>\n  }<br \/>\n}<\/p>\n<p>.showcase-link-inputs {<br \/>\n  .showcase-link-input {<br \/>\n    width: 100%;<br \/>\n    font-size: 1rem;<br \/>\n    background-color: white;<br \/>\n    margin-bottom: 12px;<br \/>\n  }<\/p>\n<p>  .showcase-link-indent {<br \/>\n    margin-left: 25px;<br \/>\n  }<\/p>\n<p>  option {<br \/>\n    width: 100%;<br \/>\n  }<br \/>\n}<\/p>\n<p>@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {<br \/>\n  .native-mobile a.showcase-link-container {<br \/>\n    background-color: #121212;<br \/>\n    color: #f0f0ee;<br \/>\n    .showcase-link-excerpt {<br \/>\n      color: #c4c4c0;<br \/>\n    }<br \/>\n  }<br \/>\n}<\/p>\n<p>            \/\/ Remove all onclicks on imgs for apps to prevent image zoom on click<br \/>\n            document.querySelectorAll(&#8216;.showcase-link-image&#8217;).forEach((img) =&gt; img.removeAttribute(&#8216;onclick&#8217;));<\/p>\n<p>        <a id=\"showcase-link-7365062\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/athletic\/7365062\/2026\/06\/18\/nba-2026-mock-draft-peterson-boozer-acuff\/\" class=\"showcase-link-container in-content-module-link testbed-shortcode\" data-shortcode-id=\"101\" data-shortcode-string=\"showcase-link\" data-content-id=\"7365062\" data-content-post-type=\"article\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"showcase-link\">What You Should Read Next<\/div>\n<div class=\"showcase-link-inner-content\">\n            <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/athletic\/uploads\/wp\/2026\/06\/17130243\/flempete-1024x683.jpeg?width=400&amp;quality=70\" alt=\"2026 NBA mock draft: Intrigue remains at the top and with the guard prospects\" class=\"showcase-link-image\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"showcase-link-text-content\">\n<div class=\"showcase-link-title\">\n                  2026 NBA mock draft: Intrigue remains at the top and with the guard prospects\n              <\/div>\n<div class=\"showcase-link-excerpt\">\n                  With less than a week before Tuesday&#8217;s first round, Sam Vecenie updates his mock with all the fresh information he&#8217;s hearing.\n              <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>        <\/a><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s the question NBA fans want answered: Who will the Washington Wizards draft at No. 1: BYU wing AJ Dybantsa or Kansas guard Darryn Peterson? To break down each prospect\u2019s game and how each would fit with Washington, The Athletic has brought together NBA draft analyst Sam Vecenie and Wizards beat writer Josh Robbins for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,241],"class_list":["post-1997962","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-nytimes-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1997962","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1997962"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1997962\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1997962"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1997962"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1997962"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}