Michigan basketball: Aday Mara, Morez Johnson Jr. climbs continue ahead of 2026 NBA Draft

The Michigan Wolverines are a little less than two months removed from the second national championship in program history, and could soon have three first-round 2026 NBA Draft picks to show for it.

The Ringer’s Danny Chau put out an updated mock draft on Wednesday with all three Michigan NBA hopefuls going in the top-15, headlined by Aday Mara at No. 8 overall to the Atlanta Hawks. The elite rim-protecting center and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year averaged 12.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists for the champs this season.

“There are a few paths that the Hawks can take with this pick,” The Ringer’s latest mock reads. “While this is the deepest and most talented point guard crop in years, perhaps that’s all the more reason to hold off and see what might still be available with the no. 23 pick. Atlanta’s lack of size became more and more apparent as its first-round series with the Knicks wore on, and if the Hawks hope to carry over their late-season success into next year by winning the possession battle, landing the best true center prospect in the draft would be a great starting point.

“Mara is a legitimate drop anchor with some of the best passing instincts in the draft, and his impressive measurements at the combine underline how much fluidity he has for such a gargantuan person. Atlanta wants to play fast and loose. While drafting a giant might seem counterintuitive to that, Mara will be able to facilitate what Atlanta does best by securing possessions and igniting breaks off outlets.”

Yaxel Lendeborg, the biggest star of this season’s championship run, averaged 15.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists this season en route to a Big Ten Player of the Year nod and All-American praise. He heads to the Oklahoma City Thunder in this mock scenario in a spot that has quickly become one of the most popular matches during mock draft season.

“OKC hasn’t exactly stuck with the consensus in its draft choices over the years, but Lendeborg could force its hand if he’s available here,” Chau said. “Yes, he’s practically as old as the iPod Classic, but there’s less than a handful of players in the draft with Lendeborg’s skill diversity: A wing who can protect the weak side as a small-ball 5, can operate as an on-ball facilitator in the pick-and-roll, and shows promise shooting off the ball kind of sounds like the platonic ideal of a modern forward. He still needs to prove that his shooting improvements can stick and that his physical advantages can hold up at the highest level of basketball, but Yaxel to the Thunder sure seems like a no-brainer.”

Rounding things out is forward Morez Johnson Jr., who recently announced he would be staying in the draft class, coming off the board to his home state Chicago Bulls at No. 15 overall. In Chau’s mock, he pairs him with No. 4 overall pick Caleb Wilson out of North Carolina. Johnson averaged 13.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists for the Wolverines this year.

“Another SLAP-you-in-the-face pick from the Bulls, who could double down on versatile and explosive defenders to give shape to a frontline built from the ground up,” he said. “Like his other Wolverine brethren, Johnson had combine measurements that were even better than expected, and, seemingly out of nowhere, he crushed the 3-point shooting drills. Playing alongside a bona fide rim protector in Mara and the most versatile player in the country in Lendeborg may have hidden some of Morez’s less refined skills. The Bulls, finally committed to a rebuild, have plenty of time to see Johnson’s development through.”

This year’s NBA Draft is set for June 23-24 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, over two nights, splitting the first and second rounds.