AJ Dybantsa reminisces on his two years in Utah just weeks ahead of NBA draft

In the six or so weeks since he penned an emotional goodbye and thank you note to BYU and members of “Cougar Nation” everywhere, projected top NBA draft pick AJ Dybantsa has traveled all over the world while preparing for June 23, when he will once again be on center stage in New York City.

Dybantsa has spent most of his time in Southern California at the Red Bull Athlete Performance Center, but he has also been back to his hometown of Brockton, Massachusetts, to watch his sister, Samarra, graduate from UMass-Boston. He’s been to Europe to watch some French Open matches — good friend Frances Tiafoe of the United State lost in the fourth round — and most recently was at Madison Square Garden to witness the Knicks’ historic comeback win over the Spurs to take a 3-1 lead in the NBA Finals.

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While he was in Massachusetts May 27-28, he took some time to chat exclusively via telephone with the Deseret News for an upcoming Father’s Day piece on his dad and manager, Anicet “Ace” Dybantsa Sr., and also agreed to provide his thoughts on his two years in Utah, including his solo season at BYU.

“I’m going to be honest with guys: If you’re not going to fit the culture and you’re not going to fit the style of play, then I wouldn’t recommend (BYU). But if you’re one of those guys that’s a culture guy that can actually fit into BYU, definitely.”

former BYU star AJ Dybantsa

Bottom line, AJ said on May 28, is that he has “absolutely no regrets” about making the highly questioned decision in 2024 to attend BYU in 2025-26 and play for the Big 12’s Cougars.

“None whatsoever, it was a great time for me,” AJ said. “It was kind of disappointing to not make a run (in the NCAA Tournament). I really thought we were going to do that, even when (Richie Saunders) got injured (late in the season). I thought we had all the pieces we needed.”

They didn’t, obviously, as Texas center Matas Vokietaitis had 23 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Longhorns…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/aj-dybantsa-reminisces-two-years-190134415.html

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Publish date : 2026-06-11 19:01:00

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