AJ Dybantsa didn’t waste any time making his NBA summer league debut count.
The former BYU star, now with the Washington Wizards, stepped into the spotlight Thursday night in Las Vegas and delivered the kind of performance that turned heads right away. Dybantsa, the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA draft, went up against Darryn Peterson and the Utah Jazz in a matchup that had plenty of attention before tipoff. By the end of it, the 6-foot-9 forward had given the crowd plenty to talk about.
He finished with a game-high 27 points and seven rebounds, and one second-quarter dunk through the lane brought the building to life. It was the kind of play that matched the buzz around him, and it came in a debut where he looked every bit like a player who expected the ball in his hands.
ESPN analysts Zach Kram and Ben Goliver praised what they saw from Dybantsa, pointing to the way he attacked the game from the start.
“Dybantsa’s offensive approach in his summer league debut can be summed up in two words: aggression and confidence,” they wrote. “The No. 1 pick was the Wizards’ lead ball handler for large swaths of Thursday’s game, and he wasn’t shy about calling his own number. He consistently got to his spots, even against Utah’s aggressive help defense, en route to scoring a game-high 27 points in 26 minutes.”
There were rough edges, too, and Kram and Goliver didn’t gloss over them.
“Not all of those spots were good spots, however,” they assessed. “Just as he did in college, Dybantsa lived off a difficult shot diet Thursday, with far too many contested midrange jumpers.
His 7-for-18 showing from the field exposes a clear area in need of refinement. (He also sat out the final clutch moments of the game because of what appeared to be leg cramps.)
But the ease with which Dybantsa penetrated the paint and his ability to get to the free throw line - his eight attempts would have been 15 if summer league’s rules weren’t condensing every free throw trip to one shot - are extremely bullish signs for his scoring prowess at the NBA level.”
Peterson, the No. 2 pick, also put up a strong line in the game, finishing with 21 points, three assists and three rebounds. Washington came away with the 92-88 win.
Elsewhere in BYU news, the school had a strong showing in the classroom as well.
Fourteen BYU swim and dive athletes earned Scholar All-America recognition from the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America on July 2. Eight men and six women were honored for their academic and athletic work during the 2025-26 season.
To earn first-team Scholar All-America status, student-athletes must post at least a 3.5 GPA and compete at the NCAA Championships. Second-team honors go to those who meet the GPA mark and either hit a “B” time standard or qualify for a diving zone meet.
Nelson, a South Jordan, Utah native, was BYU’s lone first-team selection after posting a 3.73 GPA. She also holds the school record in four events and three relays and competed in three events at the NCAA National Championships this season.
On the men’s side, Darwin Anderson, Jacob Ballard, Will Bonnett, Max Kleinman, Mattia Reina, Evan Vandersluid and Ashton Sparks were named second-team Scholar All-Americans.
In Other News...
BYU Suddenly Has A Major Defensive Question Before Camp
BYUs defense was already headed into a transition after Tanner Walls move to the NFL, and Faletau Satuala was supposed to be one of the players helping steady the back end. Instead, the safetys offseason has put a fresh layer of uncertainty on a unit that was expected to lean on him as a leader heading into 2026, especially after the Cougars 12-2 breakthrough last fall.
The concern now is less about what Satuala has already shown than when BYU will have him back on the field. A foot fracture suffered in an offseason workout has left him in doubt for the start of training camp in August, and for a defense trying to build on its best season in more than two decades, losing a player with his experience and production would be a significant early setback. [Read more 🡒]
Sitake Just Sent A Surprising Message About The Utah Rivalry
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That approach matters because the rivalry has too often been defined by the worst behavior around it, even as the players themselves have shown how much overlap there can be between the two schools. Keanu Tanuvasas move from Utah to BYU is the latest example of how the line between enemy and teammate can blur, and it adds another layer to a series that already feels personal before the opening kickoff. [Read more 🡒]
LJ Martin Holds The Key To BYUs 2026 Ceiling
LJ Martin has spent the offseason in a familiar spot for BYU, at the center of the conversation about how high this team can climb in 2026. The reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year finished last season as the conferences leading rusher despite playing through injury, and the expectation around Provo is that a healthy Martin gives the Cougars a different kind of ceiling entering fall camp.
Martin is also chasing a place in program history, with the all-time rushing mark still within reach if he keeps producing at the level he showed a year ago. Big 12 coaches already have him pegged as a preseason Offensive Player of the Year, which only adds to the pressure and the possibility around what BYUs offense could become if he stays on track. [Read more 🡒]