The 2026 NBA Draft is still months away, but the noise around former Houston guard Kingston Flemings is shifting fast. For most of the offseason, the 6-foot-6 guard was locked in as a top-10 pick. Now? Some teams in that range appear to be cooling on him.
According to Brett Siegel’s latest NBA Mock Draft 4.0, the Sacramento Kings, Atlanta Hawks, and Dallas Mavericks are all showing less interest in Flemings than you’d expect for a guy projected to go that high. Sacramento is reportedly high on Darisu Acuff Jr. Atlanta likes center Aday Mara and prefers guards Mikel Brown Jr. and Keaton Wagler. And Dallas? Sources say the Mavericks have Flemings ranked lower than other guards in the class, including Brayden Burries.
“Maybe I am reading this wrong, and all the smokescreens are hiding their true intentions after Acuff, but I don’t get the sense that the Kings are that high on Kingston Flemings,” Siegel wrote.
It’s worth noting that pre-draft rumors are always messy. Teams float smokescreens to hide their actual targets. But when multiple sources point the same direction, it means something.
Atlanta is the most interesting case. The Hawks brought Flemings in for a visit, but Siegel also notes they’ve been linked to Mara throughout the pre-draft process. The question is whether they see Flemings as a long-term point guard alongside Dyson Daniels and Nickeil Alexander-Walker, or if they go another way entirely. One thing that’s known: Atlanta has high interest in Brown and Wagler.
Dallas seems the most clear-cut. Multiple sources indicated the Mavericks don’t hold much interest in Flemings and have him ranked below several other guards. If he’s still on the board when they pick, there’s a strong chance he gets passed over again.
Siegel still has Flemings going No. 10 overall to the Milwaukee Bucks, which would keep him in the lottery but not top-10. That’s a decent fall for a guy who was considered a lock for the top half of the first round just a few months ago.
But here’s the thing: Flemings is only 19. He played one season at Houston and earned All-American Second-Team honors. In 37 games, he averaged 17.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 4.2 assists while shooting 44.5 percent from the floor and 39.7 percent from three. That’s real production for a freshman at a program that plays a tough schedule.
If he slips, some team in the middle of the first round might get a steal. Flemings has the size, the shooting, and the scoring instincts to be a starting guard in the league. The question is whether any of these top-10 teams actually believe that.
We’ll find out on draft night.
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