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Five-star BYU signee AJ Dybantsa has already been projected to be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA draft. Despite landing at No. 2 in 247Sports' 2025 class rankings, analyst Adam Finkelstein doubled down on that projection in his breakdown video of the rankings on Wednesday.
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"When it comes to long-term potential, Dybantsa probably has the highest ceiling in this class," Finkelstein said. "What we want to see a little bit more from is the commitment to be as dominant on a daily basis as possible.
"He's already plateaued a bit in his senior season at Utah Prep, and I think there are lots of reasons to be enthusiastic about what could happen at BYU. And if he makes the jump as many people suspect he will in that system, he's got a very good chance of being the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA draft."
While announcing Dybantsa as the No. 2 player, Finkelstein also highlighted the five-star prospect's quality, describing him as a player with a lot of untapped potential, especially defensively.
In the updated ranking, Kansas signee Darryn Peterson now occupies the No. 1 spot, while Duke signee Cameron Boozer maintains his third place.
Having wrapped up high school basketball, Dybantsa is now at Provo with the BYU Cougars.
BYU head coach on his expectations as AJ Dybantsa joins the Cougars
AJ Dybantsa is a major asset for the BYU program, and coach Kevin Young is well aware of the talent he's bringing in. Young said:
"His personality is going to blend in well with our team. But as far as what to expect, I don't have a great relationship with expectations, you know, I think they can really do a lot of harm. I think with him, my goal with him is to just help him be the best version of himself. And I think that's going to be a really fun player to watch. I think it's going to be something."
Dybantsa is already hitting the ground running at BYU. Recent highlights shared on the Cougars' Instagram page showed the five-star freshman in action during a team training session.
