Isaac Trotter of CBS Sports published "2026 NBA Draft Combine: Nate Ament, Koa Peat, Yaxel Lendeborg among five players with most to prove in Chicago" on Monday. Peat is one of the most polarizing players as the NBA Combine begins Monday in Chicago.
Projections for Peat in the 2026 NBA Draft vary greatly. The projections for Peat after the NBA Draft lottery was held on Sunday, vary from 13th to the Miami Heat by USA Today to Zona Zealots' parent site FanSided, predicting the power forward 30th to the New York Knicks.
Trotter began his specific analysis, stating, "Koa Peat's stock dropped significantly over the course of the long college basketball season. He started like a bat out of hell and looked like a potential top-10 pick after shredding Florida in the opener. By the end of the season, Peat's stock had sunk to the mid-20s range."
Peat had down months in December and February as he struggled with inconsistency and injuries. Trotter asked if the truth for Peat is somewhere in between the initial projections for him in the top 10 of the 2026 NBA Draft and the mid-20s range he is currently being projected to be selected.
"There will be some franchises that just aren't interested in adding another non-shooter to their rotation, especially since Peat doesn't project to be an above-average rim protector for his position....But he's physical and built like a brick house. He will puncture defenders' sternums with bouldering drives, and the NBA craves highly competitive, physical monsters."Isaac Trotter, CBS Sports.
Trotter referred to the time in Chicago will be illuminating for Peat, particularly which teams want to see Peat in private workouts. The lack of a significant number of three-point attempts by Peat makes his draft slot more team dependent than you would like, per Trotter.
Peat averaged 14.1 points per game, 5.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 0.7 blocks per game. An efficient player, Peat shot 52.8 percent from the field, made seven out of his 20 three-point attempts and had a 53.7 eFG percentage. Peat shot 62.3 percent from the free throw line.
Peat will not compete in the five-on-five scrimmages at the NBA Combine. How Peat measures and how he performs in drills and activities at the NBA Combine will be essential to the feedback Peat receives in Chicago. Once he receives the feedback, Peat will be able to make a decision to stay in the 2026 NBA Draft or return to Arizona.
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