Could No. 1 basketball recruit AJ Dybantsa really go to BYU?
It's good to be a BYU fan these days — with the college's football team currently undefeated at 8-0 and ranked 9th nationally. Now, there's huge news on the basketball front too, with the Cougars reportedly a serious contender to land the No. 1 overall high school recruit in the country for the 2025 class, the 6'9′′ dynamic scoring forward AJ Dybantsa.
So what's going on in Provo, Utah at Brigham Young University, a traditionally Mormon school, that's turning it into such a sports powerhouse?
In Dybantsa's case, BYU just seems to check a lot of the boxes he's looking for. He's currently enrolled at Utah Prep for his senior year of high school, so he's familiar with the area. According to Sports Illustrated, BYU is also prepared to offer Dybantsa the hefty NIL valuation he's expected to command — somewhere in the $4 million to $10 million range — thanks to generous support from Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith and executive Danny Ainge.
With Dybantsa already anticipated to be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA draft as well, it makes sense that Ainge and Smith would want to keep him local for college, so they can keep close tabs on his development. With the way the Jazz are playing right now (currently winless at 0-6 in the new season), they seem like a safe bet to be in the running for top lottery pick for many drafts to come in the foreseeable future.
A run by BYU's football team to the first-ever 12 team college football playoff would also help land a big-name recruit like Dybantsa, amplifying the school's image as an athletic powerhouse.
The Cougars also employed some creative recruiting on the gridiron this season to spark their surprising run. They're led by quarterback Jake Retzlaff , the only Jewish quarterback in the FBS, and one of only a handful of Jewish students overall at the predominantly Mormon school. Retzlaff, like Dybantsa, has been frequently asked why he chose BYU over other schools, and he continues to speak highly of the culture and inclusivity there.
