AJ Dybantsa, No. 1 basketball recruit, commits to BYU over UNC, Alabama

AJ Dybantsa, the No. 1 recruit in the 2025 class, and one of the most heralded NBA prospects of the past decade, has committed to BYU, he announced on “First Take” on Tuesday morning.

Dybantsa picked the Cougars over fellow finalists Alabama, Kansas and North Carolina.

In doing so, Dybantsa becomes BYU’s highest-ranked recruit in program history. He is the Cougars’ third commit in 2025, joining four-star center Xavion Staton (No. 31, per the 247Sports Composite) and four-star forward Chamberlain Burgess (No. 123).

The 6-foot-9 Dybantsa, who is playing his senior season at Utah Prep, has long been considered a BYU lean, especially after the Cougars hired former NBA assistant Kevin Young as their head coach this offseason. Between Young’s professional experience, Dybantsa choosing to play in-state his senior season and BYU’s vast NIL resources — Dybantsa is expected to command a record-breaking NIL haul, per industry chatter — the industry expectation has always been for the nation’s top recruit to wind up in Provo, Utah.

But Dybantsa’s path to this point, especially over the past few weeks, became more complicated. Despite seemingly everything being in BYU’s favor, both Alabama and North Carolina made strong pushes to land the jumbo wing in the last month. Dybantsa’s father, Ace, attended UNC’s home game last week against Alabama, a 94-79 loss.

Ultimately, though, Dybantsa picked the Cougars, becoming the program’s second five-star in as many seasons. The first was current freshman Egor Demin, a 6-foot-9 Russian point guard who didn’t commit to the program until late May. Denim leads BYU in scoring and assists and is an expected lottery pick in next summer’s NBA Draft.

Neither, though, rises to Dybantsa’s level. As a prospect, he’s in rarified air: at least in the same stratosphere as Duke freshman Cooper Flagg — the expected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft — and Duke signee Cameron Boozer, the No. 2 player in the 2025 class. Some evaluators have even maintained that of the three, they’d be most willing to bet on Dybantsa becoming the best long-term pro.

The allure for BYU in landing a player like Dybantsa is obvious. His presence alone doesn’t make the Cougars national title contenders, but it does give them a significantly higher floor in the Big 12, one of the nation’s deepest conferences. Plus, it stands to reason that other top talent will want to come to Provo to play alongside him — and with the program’s newfound NIL resources, landing those prospects is entirely realistic.

Dybantsa does stand to make a windfall in NIL terms by committing to the Cougars, but BYU’s investment will likely go farther; if Dybantsa becomes a future All-Star, the school will reap the future dividends that will come from him having played one season in Provo.

From a basketball perspective, Dybantsa should immediately become one of the best players in the college game, not unlike how Flagg has emerged as a National Player of the Year candidate in his first month at Duke. Dybantsa is more of an offensive talent than Flagg, and although the latter may be more well-rounded, Dybantsa’s scoring and shooting potential as a jumbo-sized wing is unmatched.

Combined with Young’s NBA experience — his last NBA stop before BYU was in Phoenix with Kevin Durant, who Dybantsa previously trained with and whose game he resembles — Dybantsa should have no trouble breaking out at the college level straight away.

What is Dybantsa’s NBA outlook?

Dybantsa is currently seen by most NBA scouts and executives as the best prospect to be eligible to enter the NBA since Victor Wembanyama in 2023. Undoubtedly, Dybantsa will enter the 2026 NBA Draft cycle as the likely No. 1 pick. His ceiling is immense and he plays a role that NBA teams clamor over.

Dybantsa is a big 6-foot-9 shot creator on the wing with a huge physical frame. He has a 6-foot-11 wingspan and an 8-foot-10 standing reach, overall measurements that compare nicely with someone like Celtics star wing Jayson Tatum.

Much like Tatum, Dybantsa is a monster pull-up threat already. He has a tremendous high-release point, the ability to change directions and adjust his body on the fly and can knock down shots over high contests from defenders. Every time you see him play, it feels like he’s added something new off of the bounce to separate from defenders.

On top of that, Dybantsa has the pure athleticism in terms of run-and-jump to be able to explode in transition and attack the rim with authority and power. When he’s locked in, Dybantsa is also a monster defensive player who can switch onto a number of different player types and wreak havoc.

The top of the 2026 NBA Draft is considered quite strong, with Boozer and Darryn Peterson also exciting scouts. But Dybantsa stands above that group and is seen by NBA personnel as a better star bet currently than Flagg. Obviously, Dybantsa will need to showcase what he’s capable of to maintain that standing, but it’s difficult to exaggerate just how excited the NBA is to evaluate him next season. — Sam Vecenie, NBA Draft senior writer

(Photo: Altan Gocher / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images)