Projected top-10 pick Mikel Brown Jr. has declared for the 2026 NBA draft after one season at Louisville.
Brown announced his intention to enter the draft in a Tuesday post on Instagram.
Brown averaged 18.2 points, 4.7 assists and 3.3 rebounds through 21 games while battling a recurring back injury during his freshman college season.
He is projected as the No. 8 pick in Bleacher Report’s latest 2026 NBA mock draft.
Brown played his final game for Louisville on Feb. 28. He was sidelined for the Cardinals’ last six games of the season, including two ACC Tournament contests and two NCAA Tournament games, with his lower back injury.
He missed a total of 14 games his freshman season with the injury, which Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman noted teams “will have to investigate” when considering him as a draft target.
“Just evaluating his play alone this season, the results were mixed, though he showcased clear NBA type shotmaking and creativity,” Wasserman wrote.
He added: “Between a shot diet consisting of a lot of rushed deep or contested jump shots, and a poor assist-to-turnover ratio, he may have teams picturing more of offensive spark or specialist, rather than a lead guard/decision-maker.”
Wasserman noted Brown recorded 20 points in nine games last season, including a 45-point outing against NC State and back-to-back 29-point games against Baylor and SMU.
Brown was also held below 10 points five times, however, as his shooting rates varied down the stretch of his freshman season.
How highly NBA scouts rate the high points of Brown’s freshman season, as well as how his injury is evaluated, could both impact how high he lands on boards when the 2026 NBA draft kicks off June 24.
Before then, the order of the top 14 picks will be determined in the May 10 NBA draft lottery.
The Dallas Mavericks currently have the best odds to pick at No. 8, although the Mavs’ jump to the top of the 2025 draft despite just 1.8 percent odds show that could change drastically by next month.