AJ Dybantsa, Projected No. 1 Pick in 2026 NBA Draft, Commits to BYU

AJ Dybantsa, a Brockton native expected to be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA draft, will play college basketball at BYU, he announced Tuesday.

Dybantsa announced his decision — which goes to Alabama, Kansas, Brigham Young and North Carolina — on ESPN’s “First Take” alongside host Stephen A. Smith.

The nation’s No. 1 high school player, Dybantsa plays for Utah Prep, a basketball academy that competes on the Grind Session circuit against other programs producing top college prospects left and right.

After being named Massachusetts Boys’ Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year following his freshman year at Saint Sebastian’s in Needham, where he averaged 19.1 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.5 blocks per game, he transferred to Prolific Prep in Napa, California. where he played last season. He then reclassified to the class of 2025 before transferring to Utah Prep before this season.

Dybantsa, 17, has made a few appearances in his home state this year, facing fellow New England star Cooper Flagg at the Hoophall Classic in a sold-out match in January and returning to the Boston area in November to score 19 points. in a 79-71 victory over Highlands (Va.) Emmanuel College High School.

Dybantsa follows Flagg, who hails from Maine and finished his high school career at Montverde Academy in Florida, as two of the best New England basketball products in recent memory. Flagg, who in 2022 became the youngest to be named USA Basketball’s Male Athlete of the Year, averaged 17 points per game as a freshman at Duke.