AJ Dybantsa Locks In No. 1 in Mock Drafts: Wizards Set to Take BYU’s Generational Forward
Two weeks out from the 2026 NBA Draft, the No. 1 pick conversation is over. AJ Dybantsa is going to Washington.
The BYU forward is the consensus top pick on every major draft board after a combine performance that confirmed his physical tools, an underclassman season that confirmed his shot creation, and a workout circuit that has every front office in the league raving. The Wizards, who won the lottery in May, are reportedly fully locked in.
The 2026 NBA Draft is on June 23 in Brooklyn. Dybantsa will be on stage. Washington general manager Mike Sweetney is going to walk up to the podium and read his name.
The Wizards have not had a generational prospect since John Wall in 2010, and even Wall had real flaws coming out of college. Dybantsa does not. He is a 6-foot-8 wing with a 6-foot-11 wingspan, a 41-inch vertical, and the body control of a player two inches shorter. He averaged 19.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game at BYU on 47 percent shooting. The advanced numbers were even better.
Most pre-draft scouting reports compare him to Jaylen Brown with better playmaking. That is a high comp. The downside scenario is Jabari Smith Jr., the No. 3 pick a few years back, which would still be a useful NBA player. The variance on Dybantsa is the narrowest of any player at the top of this draft.
The Wizards needed exactly this kind of swing. Washington has been one of the worst teams in the league for three straight seasons. The roster is a mix of veterans on bad contracts, recent first-round picks who have not panned out, and undrafted free agents trying to stick. The franchise needed a player to build around. Dybantsa is that player.
What he is not is a savior who turns the Wizards into a playoff team in 2026-27. Washington still has too many holes for that. The point guard play is bad. The interior defense is worse. The bench is below replacement level. Dybantsa is going to put up huge stats on a bad team for at least one season.
The picks after Dybantsa are where the draft gets interesting. The most recent mock from ESPN’s Jonathan Givony has the Utah Jazz taking Kansas guard Darryn Peterson at No. 2, the Memphis Grizzlies taking Duke forward Cameron Boozer at No. 3, and the Chicago Bulls taking North Carolina wing Caleb Wilson at No. 4. That is a deep top four. The talent drops off after pick six.
Peterson is the player to watch in the No. 2 slot. He is a 6-foot-5 combo guard with elite shooting and underrated playmaking. The Jazz already have a young guard core, so there has been some speculation that they trade the pick rather than take Peterson. The most likely scenario is they keep it.
Boozer is the safest pick in this class. He won National Player of the Year at Duke as a freshman. He is the son of two-time NBA All-Star Carlos Boozer. He shoots, rebounds, and finishes in traffic at a high level. Memphis has been rumored to be a perfect fit for him alongside Zach Edey.
For Washington, none of that matters yet. The Wizards have one job on June 23. Walk to the podium. Read AJ Dybantsa’s name. Hand him the hat. Let the rebuild begin.
This is the most significant draft pick the franchise has made in 15 years. They have to get this right. The good news is they almost certainly will.
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.
