Cougs Daily

BYU Basketball Offers Top 2025 Prospect AJ Dybansta

Casey Lundquist

Feb 20, 2024; Provo, Utah, USA; Baylor Bears center Yves Missi (21) shoots a foul shot against the Brigham Young Cougars during the second half at Marriott Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 20, 2024; Provo, Utah, USA; Baylor Bears center Yves Missi (21) shoots a foul shot against the Brigham Young Cougars during the second half at Marriott Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports / Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports
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What a start it's been to the Kevin Young era at BYU. Young continues to add critical pieces to the roster via numerous sources. He's been successful recruiting the high school ranks, the transfer portal, and most recently the international circuit when Russian guard Egor Demin committed to BYU. Young isn't done yet. He and his staff are still working to fill the last scholarship spots on the roster.

Meanwhile, Kevin Young is also looking ahead to the class of 2025. If the last month is any indication, it's clear that Young isn't afraid to go after the top prospects in the world and he isn't afraid to compete against the top schools to get them. On Tuesday, BYU offered 2025 five-star recruit AJ Dybansta. Dybansta is the consensus top overall recruit in the 2025 class and he is the projected top pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.

The timing of the offer is important, since Dybansta recently announced that he will play his last year of high school basketball for Utah Prep. His familiarity with the state of Utah and Kevin Young's NBA background give give the Cougars a unique pitch to make. On the surface, this feels like a longshot for BYU, and it probably is. But Young has proven to be a formidabble recruiter and his recruiting pitch is resonating with highly-coveted prospects. Needless to say, you can't count out Kevin Young in any recruitment, regardless of the recruit.

It's easy to see why AJ is such a coveted prospect and the projected top pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. He has elite size and athleticism and he's skilled. He can handle the ball and create his own shot, and he can comfortably knock down jumpers. The top teams in the country are going after Dybansta but BYU is shooting their shot.

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Casey Lundquist

CASEY LUNDQUIST

Casey Lundquist is the publisher and lead editor of Cougs Daily. He has covered BYU athletics for the last four years. During that time, he has published over 2,000 stories that have reached more than three million people.

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