Nets projected – With the New York Knicks just winning the NBA title behind Jalen Brunson, a draft analyst has projected the Brooklyn Nets could follow a similar blueprint by selecting Darius Acuff Jr. with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2026 NBA draft on June 23.
Days after the Knicks’ NBA championship run ended with a 94-90 win over the San Antonio Spurs in Game 5, the ripple effects are already reaching across the East River.
In Brooklyn, ESPN draft analyst Jeremy Woo projected that the Nets would take Darius Acuff Jr. with the No. 6 overall pick in the upcoming 2026 NBA draft, scheduled for June 23. It’s the kind of move that feels familiar and risky at the same time: selecting an undersized lead guard in a league that has spent years chasing bigger. more athletic prototypes.
New York’s title run has made that debate harder to ignore. The Knicks stormed through the postseason with a 16-3 playoff record. overcoming massive deficits throughout the Finals and ultimately snapping a drought that stretched back to 1973. Jalen Brunson—at the center of it—produced what’s being described as one of the greatest closeout performances in Finals history.
In Game 5, Brunson erupted for 45 points. He scored nearly half of the Knicks’ points in the 94-90 win and tied Michael Jordan’s 1998 mark for the most points in a title-clinching road game. That performance earned him Finals MVP honors.
The question now for the Nets is whether they’ll see Acuff as another Brooklyn version of that same formula. Acuff is listed at about 6-foot-2 and 190 pounds—essentially the same size as Brunson. Woo’s projection leans on the idea that in a city where the Knicks just proved “toughness and leadership” can carry teams over the finish line. teams may start valuing skill. physicality. and control of the game as much as elite size.
Acuff. the way he’s profiled here. doesn’t fit the modern lead-guard mold that many franchises have prioritized in recent years. Players such as Dylan Harper. VJ Edgecombe. Stephon Castle. Scoot Henderson. Amen Thompson. and Cade Cunningham are pointed to as the prototype—bigger guards with elite athleticism. length. or two-way upside. Acuff’s strengths are described differently: physicality, toughness, balance, footwork, change of pace, and elite three-level scoring.
Despite his smaller frame. the projection is that he can bully defenders into the paint. create in tight spaces. and control the tempo. In the numbers, his case is built around production that translates to impact. Last season at Arkansas, he averaged 23.5 points, 6.4 assists, and 3.1 rebounds per game while shooting 48.4% from the field and 44% from three. He led the Razorbacks to a 28-9 record and a Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
His résumé is also described as decorated in the way NBA teams often look for when they’re trying to map leadership to the next level: he led the SEC in scoring and assists. earned SEC Player of the Year honors. earned All-American recognition. and became the first-ever freshman to win the Bob Cousy Award as the nation’s top point guard.
A 6-foot-2 guard going at the top of the draft still feels unconventional. But the Knicks’ championship run has made unconventional feel less like a weakness and more like a strategy—one that worked when it mattered most. If the Nets decide to follow that path, it wouldn’t just be a basketball choice. It would be Brooklyn staking its offseason on the same uncomfortable lesson New York just proved on the biggest stage: size is useful. but championships don’t always need it.
New York Knicks Brooklyn Nets Jalen Brunson Darius Acuff Jr. 2026 NBA draft Jeremy Woo No. 6 overall pick NBA Finals Arkansas Razorbacks