Gatorade State Participant of the 12 months in Massachusetts as a freshman. Gold medalist with the USA U16 workforce in Mexico. Chief in factors per sport (25.8) through the EYBL Peach Jam, whereas enjoying up. Nike NIL deal. No. 1 participant within the Class of 2025. AJ Dybantsa.
“Playmaker first, two-way participant,” Dybantsa says of his private scouting report. “Protection and offense, can do some little bit of every little thing: rebound, rating, go, end. Only a workforce participant total, and unselfish.”
We’ve been following AJ since he was a lanky eighth-grader hailing from Brockton, MA, documenting his meteoric rise over the previous few years. And regardless of reclassifying in October, Dybantsa clearly stays among the best prospects within the nation. Please, infer for your self. With an unrelenting motor and shot-making capacity matched by an equally eccentric character, it was a no brainer that one of the best participant in his class is taking the pen to assist formally relaunch our historic Basketball Diary.
However extra on that later. That is now. And now’s Dybantsa’s time. He staked that declare not too way back.
“After I was in third grade, I had the dream of going to the NBA, but it surely wasn’t actually life like till Covid yr. That’s once I began taking it loopy severe,” Dybantsa says. “There have been no gyms out there and I discovered myself simply understanding exterior every single day. I simply took off. That’s when the rankings began coming, that’s when the eye began coming and I used to be like, This may very well be a actuality.”
After dominating the native New England competitors as a freshman—posting 19.1 factors, 9.6 rebounds and a couple of.5 blocks a contest—actuality set in additional this previous June when Dybantsa elected to switch to nationwide powerhouse Prolific Prep. The elevated competitors plus transferring in with a bunch household—on prime of dwelling on the alternative coast as your rapid household—could be a troublesome transition for any teenager.
“Probably the most difficult half [about being AJ] is simply folks forgetting that I’m a child,” Dybantsa tells SLAM. “Like, I’m 17 years outdated, I’ve a life exterior of basketball. However they only see the web aspect of me so they only suppose every little thing’s flowers and butterflies, when it’s actually not.”
Whereas Dybantsa finds his footing, he leans on the life classes and work ethic instilled in him by his Congolese father and Jamaican mom. “Nothing’s given to you, every little thing is earned,” he says of his dad and mom’ reminders. “It was large for me in my life improvement.”
Faculties are swarming, the League’s already inside view and he simply signed on the dotted line with The Swoosh. SLAM has been overlaying highschool hoopers for a minute (30 years, tbh!) and we are able to say with confidence, the following modern-day highschool famous person is right here, and his identify is AJ Dybantsa.
Portraits by Marcus Stevens.
