"He was looking for a stepping stone": Analyst makes bold claim on top prospect AJ Dybantsa snubbing Dan Hurley's UConn for BYU

One of the many offers that AJ Dybantsa received and turned down during his recruitment process was from Dan Hurley's UConn Huskies. Dybantsa is the second-ranked prospect in the 2025 class who committed to play for BYU in December.

Initially, the Huskies were rumored to be among the frontrunners in securing Dybantsa's commitment, but that speculation ultimately did not materialize.

Analyst Mark Zanetto weighed in on the five-star recruit's decision on Thursday's episode of "The Hoops Cap Pod" on YouTube.

"UConn offered him early in the process," Zanetto said (Timestamp: 11:10). "There was some buzz — maybe there was some potential — but he was looking for a stepping stone. And I’m not saying that’s unusual; a lot of these players are one-and-done.

"But there’s a way you can go about doing things that I feel like Dan Hurley feels comfortable with. You can come in and be like, 'All right, you’ll be here for one year.' But if it becomes about, 'Hey, how can you feature me on offense? How am I going to look to scouts?' — that was the talk early on — then that’s a different thing."

Zanetto further elaborated that AJ Dybantsa, a projected future NBA lottery pick, may have prioritized his individual prospects over the team, which Hurley and his staff allegedly took exception to.

AJ Dybantsa to challenge UConn in anticipated Hall of Fame game

The upcoming Hall of Fame game will feature a compelling matchup between UConn and BYU, highlighted by a small storyline: AJ Dybantsa, who was once linked to the Huskies.

On Tuesday, CBS Sports insider Jon Rothstein reported that the two programs have agreed to play a neutral-site game at TD Garden in Boston in mid-November.

It will be a homecoming for BYU freshman Dybantsa, who is originally from Brockton, Massachusetts, which is about a half-hour drive from Boston.

The last time the Cougars faced UConn was in 2003, when they lost 58-53 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

AJ Dybantsa will join the BYU team that went 26-10 overall last season in coach Kevin Young's first season. The Cougars fell to Alabama in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.

He will be looking to lead BYU to build on that success as well as further improve his prospect status.