A.J. Dybantsa, the top recruit in the Class of 2025 and potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, is heading to BYU.
The 6-foot-9 forward officially announced his commitment to BYU on Tuesday, picking the Cougars over Alabama, North Carolina and Kansas. Dybantsa is the first-ever five-star recruit to commit to BYU (per 247 Sports), citing first-year coach Kevin Young’s NBA ties as a major reason for his decision to play college hoops in Provo.
“At BYU, the whole staff from the head coach on down came from the NBA,” Dybantsa told ESPN. “Head coach Kevin Young coached my favorite player in KD (Kevin Durant), and coached Devin Booker. Both had a lot of good things to say about him. We watched clips of both.
“Coach Young’s NBA background played a big factor in my decision. He came from the NBA. He coached NBA players. You cannot get any closer to where I want to be.”
As part of his commitment to BYU, Dybantsa received a name, image and likeness (NIL) deal worth approximately $7 million, college basketball insider Adam Zagoria reported. For reference, Duke star Cooper Flagg has the highest reported NIL value among current men’s college basketball players at $2.9 million, per On3.
Dybantsa, a Massachusetts native, recently moved to Utah ahead of his senior season, opting to close out his high school career at Utah Prep for 2024-25. He previously played at Saint Sebastian’s School in Massachusetts and Prolific Prep in California, winning Massachusetts Boys’ Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year as a freshman at the former.
In between his stints and Saint Sebastian’s School and Prolific Prep, Dybantsa shined as a 16-year-old at Nike Peach Jam in July 2023. He led the event in scoring (25.8 points per game) and reclassified from the Class of 2026 to the Class of 2025 a few months later. He scored 23.1 points per game in this year’s Peach Jam event, helping the Oakland Soldier reach the championship game.
Dybantsa will bring his scoring ability to a BYU program that underwent a recent program overhaul. Young replaced Mark Pope after he left for Kentucky over the offseason, hiring the former Phoenix Suns assistant coach to replace him. BYU has gotten off to a 6-2 start under Young and his first full recruiting class currently ranks 11th on 247 Sports.
“It just feels really good to get it announced,” Dybantsa told 247 Sports. “Everybody at BYU when I went on my visit was screaming my name and hoping for me to come, so I think they will be happy. I’m just ready to officially be a Cougar.”
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