AJ Dybantsa, who is the No. 1 prospect in the 2025 college basketball class, announced on Tuesday that he is committing to BYU.
He is the first five-star recruit to commit to the Cougars since ESPN started tracking in 2007. He chose BYU over powerhouse basketball schools like Kansas, North Carolina and Alabama.
When speaking about his decision on ESPN's First Take, Dybantsa gave a lot of credit to coach Kevin Young.
"At BYU, the whole staff from the head coach on down came from the NBA," Dybantsa said. "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," Dybantsa said. "He came from the NBA. He coached NBA players. You cannot get any closer to where I want to be."
Dybantsa is the projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, so it sounds like he wanted to learn from a coach who has worked in the league when preparing to join the NBA after one year of college play. Young worked as an assistant coach for the Philadelphia 76ers and Phoenix Suns before being named BYU coach in April 2024.
AJ Dybantsa – the top-ranked prospect in the 2026 NBA Draft class – has committed to Brigham Young University, he announces on ESPN's First Take. Landmark day for the BYU Cougars. pic.twitter.com/8qB64WqtIE
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 10, 2024
Dybantsa is originally from Massachusetts but played high school basketball at Prolific Prep in California before transferring to Utah Prep in Utah this past summer. He will finish out his high school career at Utah Prep, which is under four hours away from BYU.
He was named the Gatorade Player of the Year in 2022–23 for his home state of Massachusetts. He's also played for Team USA winning gold medals at the 2023 FIBA Americas U16 Championship and 2024 FIBA U17 World Cup.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as No. 1 Hoops Recruit AJ Dybantsa Picks Surprising School Over Kansas, UNC.
