Ever since bursting onto the recruiting scene as a talented collegiate prospect, Tennessee freshman Nate Ament has been widely considered as one of the top NBA Draft prospects in his class. The 6-foot-10 wing projects to be a one-and-done player after his freshman season on Rocky Top and has the potential to go in the Top 5 of the 2026 NBA Draft.
His name was scattered across NBA big boards across the summer, and nothing has changed through the first two weeks of the season with Ament now in full swing on the court for Rick Barnes’ Volunteers.
ESPN draft expert Jeremy Woo put out his latest ’26 NBA mock draft on Tuesday with Ament landing in the top five picks of the draft. Woo has Ament going fourth overall to the Indiana Pacers as the top player drafted from the Southeastern Conference.
“Ament has been productive against lower-level opponents to begin the season and will be under the microscope next week in Las Vegas, with all 30 NBA teams expected to send decision-makers to the prospect-laden Players Era Championship,” Woo wrote for ESPN. “Ament is still learning to leverage his 6-foot-10, 207-pound frame as a scorer, but it has been encouraging to see him attack downhill and draw fouls. Scouts will be eager to evaluate him against better competition, but his frame and skill set portend excellent upside as he gains experience.”
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Woo’s evaluation of the Tennessee playmaker is spot on in the early going. While Ament might not be as dominant as some of the other talented freshmen in the class so far, he’s still honing in his skillset and adjusting to a team that underwent a total roster transformation over the offseason. That’s not to say he hasn’t been impressive, though. Ament is averaging 19.8 points per game, 9.0 rebounds per game, and 3.0 assists per game in his first four collegiate games.
He’s still working on getting his shot from the perimeter down, sitting at just 22.2% from being the arc, but there has been noticeable growth in his ability to drive into the paint and draw fouls. He’s averaging 8.75 free throw attempts per game and has shot no less than nine free throws per game since the opening contest.
Ament also saw his first double-double of the season during Monday’s 91-66 win over Rice, with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
The freshman wing still has plenty of growth ahead of him, but Tennessee’s coaching staff is keen on building him into a strong offensive player with his size and skill set.
It’s hard to imagine that we’ll be discussing any big falls for Ament as mock drafts continue to be released throughout the season. In Bleacher Report’s first NBA mock draft last Tuesday, Jonathan Wasserman tagged Ament as the fifth overall pick in a talent-rich draft class.
“I think he will come along,” VFL Ron Slay said about Ament on a recent episode of The RTI Low-Down podcast. “He’s not falling out of the Top 10 of the draft, regardless of how this year goes. It does not matter. People’s jobs rely on them drafting him. So, he’s not going to fall. We can sit there and watch Keon Johnson, Julian Phillips, all these guys that had a solid SEC season, and they still go high in the draft? You best believe Nate Ament will still be right there.”
Check out Jeremy Woo’s full NBA Mock Draft for ESPN on Tuesday here.
