Class of 2026 prospect AJ Dybantsa with Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant.
Despite being just 16 years old, A.J. Dybantsa led all scorers at the prestigious Nike
While averaging nearly 26 points at the grassroots event in North Augusta, S.C., the 6-foot-8 Class of 2026 forward from Brockton, Mass., was being discussed as potentially the “Best High School Player Regardless of Class” along with two other high school stars, Cooper Flagg and Cam Boozer, one of the twin sons of former Duke and NBA standout Carlos Boozer. Yet while Flagg and Boozer dominated in the 16U bracket, Dybantsa played up in the 17U division.
His performance at Peach Jam came after ESPN ranked him the No. 1 freshman in the country, he earned Gatorade Player of the Year honors at his former school, St. Sebastian’s (Mass.), in March, and he won a gold medal with the Team USA U16 team in Mexico in June.
Yet even with all these accolades, Dybantsa wasn’t satisfied because his Expressions Elite team finished 1-4 at Peach Jam and didn’t qualify for the quarterfinals.
“I could’ve done better,” Dybantsa, who has transferred to Prolific Prep in Napa Valley, Calif., said Tuesday in a phone interview from Los Angeles. “We went 1-4 so all the extra stuff doesn’t really matter. We were losing games.”
Still, Dybantsa impressed the slew of NBA scouts and college coaches on hand, in part because he felt more relaxed than a year ago when he was coming out of eighth grade.
“Last year, I was pretty nervous,” he said. “It was my first year, I was in eighth grade. But now I just play my game and I'm not afraid to make mistakes.”
AJ Dybantsa with Washington Wizards guard Jordan Poole.
Last week, A.J. attended the Jayson Tatum Camp in St. Louis, where Tatum, Chris Paul, Bradley Beal, Paolo Banchero, Cam Whitmore and Jett Howard were the counselors.
At the camp, Tatum offered Dybantsa, a big Boston Celtics fan, some words of wisdom.
“He just told me to keep my head level, don't get too high, don’t get too low and just continue to work,” A.J. said. “He just told me to be more simple, just get to my spots and don't over-dribble.”
Dybantsa added: “I met him before so I wasn’t star struck but definitely coming from him, he was first-team All-NBA so it’s good getting advice from someone like that.”
On the court, A.J.’s team, which also included fellow high school players Flagg, Tyran Stokes, Derrion Reed, Cam Scott and V.J. Edgecombe beat Tatum’s team which also included Beal, Banchero, Whitmore and Howard.
“We beat them twice,” A.J. said.
“A.J. is unreal,” one NBA scout at the camp said.
After the Tatum camp, A.J. and his father Ace, a Boston University Police officer who hails from the Republic of Congo, have shifted their base to Los Angeles, where they have met with various agents about his future while working out with everyone from Kevin Durant to LeBron James.
“We’re just enjoying L.A. and having some workouts with some of these pros,” Ace said by phone.
On Tuesday, A.J. worked out with Jordan Poole and Durant, whom he called his “favorite player.”
K.D’s message?
“Stay focused, make the game easier than what it is,”A.J. said, adding of Durant’s message” “We’re taller than everybody so don’t need to do all that extra dribbling, just one or two dribbles and get to your spot.”
AJ Dybantsa with Tyrese Maxey of the 76ers.
On Thursday, three days after Bronny James, LeBron’s elder son, collapsed at a USC practice due to cardiac arrest, Dybantsa worked out with LeBron outside Los Angeles.
“It was good, just a regular workout,” he said. “Doing a workout with LeBron, there’s nothing else to it. Just the work that he puts in, just shows what work you have to do, what it takes to do it. I mean, I’m not new to putting in work so it wasn’t anything crazy.”
He added: “He was just giving me tips on moves, like get lower, get a better base so I don’t get knocked off balance. Stuff like that.”
Asked what it meant that James showed up after what happened to Bronny, Dybantsa said, “he cares.”
He continued, “He’s a man of his word. He said he was going to work out. Didn’t know what was going to happen to his son, but even though it took him an extra day, he still showed up and worked out.”
AJ Dybantsa worked out Thursday with LeBron James.
Later Thursday, a cardiologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles said that Bronny “has been discharged home, where he is resting.” His father, LeBron James, said on social media that his family was “together, safe and healthy.”
And soon Dybantsa will head off to the Steph Curry SC30 Camp Aug. 3-4.
“I hope I can get advice from him,” he said. “He’s the best shooter of all time so it would be good learning from him.”
On the recruiting front, A.J. will likely be able to go to any college he wants but currently holds 10 scholarship offers: Boston College, UConn, Michigan, Georgia Tech, Washington, Georgetown, Providence, Texas, Alabama and Ole Miss.
“I'm open to anybody,” he said.
UConn and Providence are two schools close to his home in Brockton. UConn coach Dan Hurley and his staff watched Dybantsa (and Flagg) at Peach Jam.
“Obviously, they just won the national championship but just because they won that doesn’t mean I'm automatically going to their school,” Dybantsa said.
Asked if the Huskies could attract five-star talent now that they’ve won an NCAA title, he said: “Oh yeah, definitely. They have a good past also, definitely a good school. They can attract anybody but not every school is gonna be the right fit for everybody.”
He also attended several Providence games last year under former coach Ed Cooley, who has since left for Georgetown and been replaced by Kim English.
“I haven’t seen him coach so I don’t want to say anything that’s negative or not true,” he said. “I've been to a couple games last year.”
As for his future, Dybantsa has transferred to national power Prolific Prep in Napa Valley, Calif., where he will play alongside Stokes.
“We weren’t playing a national schedule [at St. Sebastian’s],” Dybantsa said. “I wanted to play a national schedule and showcase my talent.”
Ace said Prolific Prep coach Ryan Bernardi, a Milton, Mass. native “convinced me” to send his son to the Napa Valley, Calif. school.
“He tried to recruit A.J. for the last year and a half and I kept on saying, “No, no, no,'” Ace said with a smile. “‘I guess no means yes to a coach. He finally convinced me. We went to visit.”
Through all the attention and distractions, Ace is determined to keep his son focused on two things.
“I have him focused on books and basketball and I told him let daddy handle everything else,” Ace said, adding that his son is on the Honor Roll.
“He can’t play ball if he doesn’t have Honor Roll.”
