AJ Dybantsa Is Now the Favorite to Go No. 1 Overall to the Wizards: What His Pre-Draft Process Is Telling Scouts
The Washington Wizards won the lottery. They look like they are about to win the year by drafting AJ Dybantsa.
The latest pre-draft intelligence around the league has Dybantsa sitting at the top of Washington’s board. The former BYU star averaged a nation-leading 25.5 points per game in his lone college season. He is 6-foot-9, can score at every level, and looks like the kind of franchise centerpiece that the Wizards have been searching for since John Wall was in his prime.
Dybantsa, Duke’s Cameron Boozer, and Kansas guard Darryn Peterson are widely considered the three names at the top of this draft. The race for No. 1 was wide open until recently. Now it is tilting in Dybantsa’s direction.
What Scouts Love About Dybantsa
The scoring numbers are the obvious headline, but they are not the most impressive part of his profile. Dybantsa shot the ball with real efficiency at the rim and in the midrange. His three-point volume was lower than scouts would like, but the touch is there. He projects as a high-volume scorer in the NBA from his very first season.
The defensive upside is the real swing. At 6-foot-9 with a 7-foot wingspan, Dybantsa can guard four positions. He moves his feet well in space. He is not a rim protector in the traditional sense, but he is the kind of forward who can switch onto a guard in the playoffs without getting torched.
The Cameron Boozer Argument
The most credible challenger to Dybantsa for the No. 1 pick is Boozer. The Duke freshman tied for the national lead with 22 double-doubles while averaging 22.5 points and 10.2 rebounds. He is a much more polished interior scorer than Dybantsa. He has the bloodlines (his dad Carlos played 13 years in the NBA). And he has the kind of NBA-ready frame that lets him contribute on Day 1.
Boozer is also the safer pick. He is less likely to bust than Dybantsa because his floor as a versatile big is so high. But the ceiling is the question, and most front offices believe Dybantsa’s ceiling is higher.
The Wizards Need This Pick to Work
Washington has been the worst franchise in basketball for the better part of a decade. They lucked into the No. 1 pick in a draft that is supposed to be historically deep. They cannot afford to overthink this.
If Dybantsa is the scout consensus and the betting odds favorite, the Wizards take Dybantsa. The Utah Jazz then get to choose between Boozer and Peterson at No. 2. The Memphis Grizzlies grab whoever falls at No. 3. The top of this draft is going to be one of the most stacked top-three groups in years.
The draft is June 23-24 in Brooklyn. Dybantsa is the early favorite to walk across the stage first. Three months from now we will know if Washington made the right call. The Wizards better hope they did.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
