AJ Dybantsa, Nation’s No. 1 Basketball Recruit, signs with BYU

PROVO, Utah — The No. 1 player in the country, AJ Dybantsa, will play for the Cougars in 2025-26, BYU head men’s basketball coach Kevin Young announced on Tuesday morning.  

“We’re so excited to welcome AJ and his family to BYU,” Young said. “We’ve been able to build a great relationship with him and his family and can’t wait to have them all in BYU blue. AJ is a generational talent. He’s a great young man who has a strong appetite to be the best player he can be. His versatile skill set and playmaking will seamlessly fit into our style of play. This is a great day for BYU basketball.”

Dybantsa becomes the highest-rated recruit and first-ever five-star high school recruit to sign with the Cougars as he is rated as the top recruit in the country according to all recruiting services (On3, 247Sports, ESPN, Rivals). He was recently named to the Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy Boy’s High School Player of the Year Watch List along fellow signee Xavion Staton. 

The 6-foot-9 forward is playing his senior season at Utah Prep in Hurricane, Utah. He led the team to an undefeated weekend at the Border League in Las Vegas, Nev., recording a pair of double-doubles, including an 18-point, 16-rebound performance against Bishop Gorman. 

This past summer, Dybantsa was an integral part of Team USA’s run to the 2024 FIBA U17 World Cup title, averaging 14.1 points, 4.1 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game. He scored in double figures in all three knockout-round games, including a 14-point performance in the final against Italy, helping the Americans put the finishing touches on their seventh straight title. He also helped Team USA to the 2023 FIBA U16 Americas Championship, averaging 13.7 points, 3.8 assist and 3.7 assists per game. 

6’8 wing AJ Dybantsa (@ADybantsa ) upside is through the roof. Has a pro pace and scores at all 3 levels. Still only 17 years old 🤯 pic.twitter.com/Wr1vf1EQD5

— Swish Cultures (@swishcultures_) July 7, 2024

Dybantsa was the youngest player to compete in the 2024 Nike Hoop Summit, finishing with a game-high 21 points, going 7-of-14 from the field, 2-of-7 from three and 5-of-6 from the charity stripe. He also had seven rebounds, three assists and two steals going against the top recruits in the 2024 class, including Cooper Flagg, Ace Bailey, Dylan Harper and Asa Newell. 

He was named the Peach Jam Offensive MVP after leading the Oakland Soldiers to the title game. He averaged 23.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steals per game. He also earned Nike EYBL 17U First Team accolades in July, when he averaged 22.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per game while shooting 50.2 percent from the field. 

The native of Brockton, Mass. spent last year at Prolific Prep helping them win their second consecutive The Grind Session World Championship. He averaged 21.2 points, 9.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game en route to earning second team MaxPreps All-America accolades. 

He was one of two sophomores invited to the 2023 NBPA Top 100 Camp where he earned All-Star accolades after leading the event in scoring. 

Dybantsa was named the Massachusetts Boys’ Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year following his freshman season at Saint Sebastian’s School. He averaged 19.1 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.5 blocks per game, leading Saint Sebastian to the NEPCAS Class A state title game. 

With the addition of Dybantsa, Young has signed the top-three-rated recruits in program history (Xavion Staton, Kanon Catchings) and four of the top seven.