AJ Dybantsa Locked In as Wizards’ No. 1 Pick: What Washington Is Getting in the BYU Star
The 2026 NBA Draft is two weeks away, and the Washington Wizards have made it official in everything but ceremony. AJ Dybantsa, the BYU star and consensus top prospect in this class, is going to be the No. 1 overall pick. The Wizards rebuild finally has its franchise cornerstone.
Dybantsa, 19, dominated the AWS NBA Draft Combine last month. His measurements confirmed every physical projection scouts had been making since his high school days. The wingspan checked in at 7-foot-1. The standing reach is elite. His combination of size, fluidity, and shot creation is the rarest skill set in the draft.
BYU under Kevin Young leaned heavily on Dybantsa during his lone college season. He averaged better than 17 points per game on improved efficiency, showcased his passing in the pick and roll, and held his own defensively against ranked opponents. The college numbers don’t fully capture the upside, which is what excites NBA front offices.
The Wizards have been quietly executing a multi-year tank job and finally caught a break at the lottery. Washington won the No. 1 pick over teams with worse records, locking in the franchise’s first true cornerstone in the post-John Wall era. The fan base has waited a long time for this moment.
Pairing Dybantsa with Bilal Coulibaly creates a legitimately exciting wing duo. Coulibaly has flashed All-Defensive potential. Dybantsa projects as the kind of scoring wing who can carry a possession against any defense. The Wizards now have two long, athletic forwards who can switch everything on defense and create off the dribble on offense.
The comparison being thrown around the most is Jaylen Brown. That’s a lazy stylistic match but it captures the broad strokes. Dybantsa has the scoring tools, the defensive instincts, and the body to develop into a perennial All-Star. Whether he becomes that level of player depends on the development environment Washington provides.
That’s where the Wizards organization has to step up. The franchise has not been a great development home for star players for the last 15 years. The coaching staff under Brian Keefe is young and capable. The front office has shown patience with the rebuild. Now they have to prove they can actually develop a top pick.
The supporting cast still needs work. The Wizards are short on guards who can run the offense, short on rim protection, and short on shooting at multiple positions. The free agency period and additional draft picks have to be used to surround Dybantsa with the right pieces. Drafting him is the easy part.
What Dybantsa brings on day one is real. He should be the leading scorer on the roster from training camp. His defensive versatility lets the staff scheme up creative matchups. He’s mature enough to handle the rookie media circus without it becoming a distraction. The Wizards finally have a player to build around.
The 2026 Draft happens June 23-24 in Brooklyn. Dybantsa will be the first name called. The rebuild officially begins the moment the commissioner says his name. Washington has been waiting years for this. The fan base should enjoy it. The next era of Wizards basketball starts now.
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.
