‘They’ve shown a lot of love’ — Nate Ament reveals which teams have had the most interest in him ahead of the 2026 NBA Draft

The former Tennessee star said on Sportscenter that he has worked out for a handful of teams.

Craig Smith — College Football & NFL Trending News Writer
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Tennessee forward Nate Ament (10) walks off the court after losing a NCAA basketball game between Tennessee and Alabama at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center in Knoxville, Tenn., on Feb. 28, 2026. Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

With a very exciting and widely viewed, albeit short, NBA Finals in the rearview mirror, the league’s offseason is now upon us. It’s prized offseason event is set to take place on Sunday in the form of the 2026 NBA Draft, and former Tennessee Vols Nate Ament, Ja’Kobi Gillespie, and Felix Okpara all should hear their names called.

While Gillespie and Okpara should be second round targets, there’s no doubt that Ament will be a first round pick, and potentially a lottery one at that.

The question is where in the first round he’ll go. The Vols’ second-leading scorer last season joined Sportscenter this week, and he revealed who’s already worked him out in the pre-draft process and shown interest.

Ament says Chicago, Brooklyn, Oklahoma City, and the LA Clippers have shown the most interest

“I’ve only done four workouts, so just Chicago, Brooklyn, OKC, and the Clippers,” Ament said. “So, they’ve shown a lot of love.”

The Clippers and Nets are certainly interesting teams based on where they’re picking. The Clippers currently hold the fifth pick, and the Nets are at No. 6. That’s a bit higher than the 10-13 consensus where Ament appears to fall in most mock drafts from the drat pundits.

But draft surprises happen, and the experts are often wrong. Teams trade down. And sometimes teams are simply just doing their due diligence.

Oklahoma City is at No. 12 and 17, and the Bulls hold picks No. 4 and 15. Picks 12 and 15, and perhaps even 17, could certainly be potential landing spots for Ament. Landing with the Thunder certainly wouldn’t be a bad thing for Ament at all, as OKC was the 2024-25 NBA champion and is built to make another run at the title next season.

We’ll find out soon enough where Ament goes, with the NBA Draft set to take place on Tuesday, June 23-24 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

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