$4.1 million NIL-valued AJ Dybantsa drops 3-word reaction as Mikel Brown Jr celebrates FIBA U19 World Cup win

Team USA captured its ninth FIBA Under-19 World Cup title, beating Germany 109-76 in the gold medal game on Sunday at the Lausanne Arena in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Louisville commit Mikel Brown Jr, Team USA's starting point guard, won his second gold medal in junior-level competition. His latest victory came a year after he helped the US team win the FIBA U18 AmeriCup in Argentina.

He celebrated the achievement on social media with an Instagram post, depicting his gratitude to USA Basketball and the fans who supported Team USA in the tournament.

BYU commit and FIBA U19 World Cup Most Valuable Player AJ Dybantsa, whose NIL value is pegged at $4.1 million (per On3), reacted to Brown's post, appreciating the efforts of his teammate, whom he considered a "brother."

AJ Dybantsa's reaction to Mikel Brown Jr's Instagram post (Image Source: @mikel_brownjr/Instagram)

The Tommy Lloyd-coached team, with less preparation time, breezed past the opposition and won the country's record ninth gold medal in the competition. It helped Team USA get back to the U19 podium after missing the top three positions in the 2023 edition.

The squad averaged 114.6 points per game during the tournament, eclipsing the previous mark of 108.9 points set by the 1987 Yugoslavia team, which included Toni Kukoc, Dino Radja, Vlade Divac, and Sasa Djordjevic.

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Mikel Brown Jr. shows playmaking brilliance in FIBA U19 World Cup

Mikel Brown Jr. showed what he can do when he suits up for the Louisville Cardinals in the 2025-26 college basketball season. Brown was consistent in the entire FIBA U19 World Cup, posting averages of 14.9 points, 2.1 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game.

The 6-foot-3 point guard scored at least 20 points three times, including two 24-point games against France and Cameroon in the group stage. He dropped 20 points in Team USA's quarterfinal win against Canada.

Brown also showed his future coach, Pat Kelsey, his ability to make plays, posting eight assists two times against Canada and Cameroon. He was also able to minimize his turnovers, giving up 2.1 errors per contest.

The 19-year-old point guard shot 46.7% from the field and sizzled from the 3-point line, making 2.9 triples each game en route to a 47.6% clip. He likewise made 82.4% of his foul shots in the tournament.

His performance earned him the All-Tournament First Team award alongside teammate AJ Dybantsa, Christian Anderson, Hannes Steinbach and Zak Smrekar.

Mikel Brown Jr comes back to the Louisville campus for the training camp, proud with a gold medal on his neck from an awesome stint in the FIBA U19 World Cup.

This would help him get motivated in his preparations for the 2025-26 season, in which the Cardinals aim to improve on their second-place finish in the ACC regular season and tournament last year.