Aj Dybantsa Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: First-Time All-Stars, 2026 Draft, NBA Cup, More

December 5th, 2025 at 12:15pm CST by Luke Adams

The 2026 NBA All-Star Game is still over two months away, but a number of players around the league are emerging as legitimate candidates to appear in the game for the first time, writes Zach Harper of The Athletic.

Harper points to Bulls guard Josh Giddey, Hawks forward Jalen Johnson, Pistons center Jalen Duren, and Heat guard Norman Powell as Eastern Conference standouts who could become first-time All-Stars, while identifying Lakers guard Austin Reaves, Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija, Thunder big man Chet Holmgren, and Nuggets guard Jamal Murray as the most plausible first-timers in the Western Conference.

Of those players, only Duren looks like a shoo-in to make the game, according to Zach Kram of ESPN, who takes his own early look at potential All-Stars and divides players into two groups — “near-locks” and “on the bubble.”

Duren is among Kram’s seven near-locks in the East, though he considers Giddey, Johnson, and Powell to have strong cases to make the cut. In the West, Kram thinks Murray could still find himself on the outside looking in despite a career-best first half, given the strength of the competition for the 12 spots. However, with eight international spots to fill and the potential for injury replacements beyond the initial 24 All-Stars, there could be multiple paths for the Nuggets guard to finally earn the honor.

We have more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Although Kansas guard Darryn Peterson has only appeared in two games so far this season, he’s the 2026 draft prospect that NBA scouts seem most excited about, according to Sam Vecenie of The Athletic, who places Peterson atop his most recent mock draft, ahead of Duke’s Cameron Boozer and BYU’s AJ Dybantsa. Tennessee’s Nate Ament has slipped out of Vecenie’s top five, with UNC’s Caleb Wilson at No. 4, followed by Louisville’s Mikel Brown Jr.
A panel of ESPN insiders answers a series of questions related to the NBA Cup, including which player was the MVP during the group stage (Luka Doncic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander got two votes apiece) and which team has the best chance to upset Oklahoma City in the knockout round (the Lakers earned three of five possible votes).
In an interesting story for ESPN, Kevin Pelton takes a deep dive into the data to explore the impact of familiarity on shooting efficiency and explains why a number of high-profile players who changed teams over the summer – including Cameron Johnson, Desmond Bane, and Myles Turner – may have gotten off to slow starts.
Lindsay Schnell of The Athletic examines how former G League players became NCAA-eligible and what it means for college basketball going forward. “At the end of the day, we’re not the ones making decisions,” Baylor coach Scott Drew said. “We either adapt to the rules or we get left behind. So until something changes, I guess all of us are watching G League games now.”

And-Ones: Kaminsky, 2026 Draft, Gambling Cases, More

November 27th, 2025 at 9:11am CST by Luke Adams

Longtime NBA big man Frank Kaminsky is in advanced negotiations with the Japanese team Alvark Tokyo and is nearing a deal, reports Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com.

Kaminsky, the ninth overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft, has appeared in 413 total regular season games for Charlotte, Phoenix, Atlanta, and Houston, but has been out of the league since the 2022/23 season, outside of a brief stint with the Suns in training camp in 2024.

In his eight years in the NBA, Kaminsky averaged 8.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 19.8 minutes per game, with a .430/.349/.746 shooting line. Last season, the seven-foot forward/center made 25 appearances for the Raptors 905 in the G League, averaging 13.4 PPG, 5.9 RPG, and 4.1 APG on .486/.351/.735 shooting.

As Urbonas notes, Alvark Tokyo is a perennial playoff team in Japan’s top basketball league (the B.League), but is off to a slow start this season due to injuries. The team currently has a 10-8 record and wouldn’t make the playoffs if the season ended today.

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Kansas guard Darryn Peterson is the No. 1 pick in the latest mock draft from Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report, with Duke’s Cameron Boozer coming in at No. 2 and BYU’s AJ Dybantsa at No. 3. While all three players look like elite prospects, Wasserman suggests that Dybantsa’s decision-making and three-point shooting are a couple reasons why some scouts may prefer Peterson and/or Boozer. UNC’s Caleb Wilson and Tennessee’s Nate Ament round out Wasserman’s top five, in that order.
Joe Vardon and Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic take a closer look at the key individuals involved in the two federal gambling cases that have resulted in the arrests of Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and Heat guard Terry Rozier, while ESPN’s Brian Windhorst explores what we know about former NBA player and coach Damon Jones, one of the three people indicted in both cases.
ESPN’s NBA insiders identify the key questions facing 16 of the NBA’s top teams – eight in each conference – and consider whether those clubs can answer those questions and become (or remain) legitimate contenders this season.

And-Ones: K. George, Canada, 2026 Draft, Boozer, More

November 23rd, 2025 at 10:53am CST by Luke Adams

Wizards wing Kyshawn George, one of two active NBA players to represent Canada in the 2025 AmeriCup (Timberwolves forward Leonard Miller was the other), tells Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca that he “one hundred per cent” hopes to play for his home country in the 2027 World Cup and 2028 Olympics.

“That’s one of my goals, to be able to be on that final team that’s going to compete for gold,” George said. “I’m just trusting the process, doing what I can do day-to-day to prove that I belong.”

George, a first-round pick in 2024, had yet to make his NBA regular season debut when Team Canada won bronze at the 2023 World Cup or competed in the 2024 Olympics in Paris. But he has taken a significant step forward in his second season in the league, with averages of 16.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game, plus a .484/.440/.773 shooting line. The 21-year-old credited his time with the national team this summer as a factor in his breakout fall.

“I do a lot of individual work in the offseason,” George said. “But there’s no better way to put it into practice than in an actual game. I was grateful to be able to play for Team Canada and to have them trust me to have that type of role where they trusted me with the ball and to make plays for myself and my teammates, and I think that just kind of led into training camp and the start of the season, where the Wizards have trusted me to make the right decision on the floor.”

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Sam Vecenie of The Athletic shares some of his early takeaways on notable 2026 draft prospects, including explaining why most scouts seem to have Cameron Boozer behind Darryn Peterson and AJ Dybantsa in the race for the No. 1 overall pick. Vecenie points to shot creation and finishing at the rim as areas where Boozer has room for improvement.
Which teams are most in need of a “blow it up” trade? Sam Quinn of CBS Sports ranks all 30 teams by that metric, from the Thunder at No. 30 to the Kings at No. 1. The Mavericks, Pelicans, Clippers, and Grizzlies are also in Quinn’s top five.
The Athletic’s NBA writers identify one area of concern for all 30 NBA teams, including frontcourt depth for the Celtics, turnovers for the Rockets, and three-point shooting for the Lakers.
Veteran NBA reporter Zach Lowe has joined Amazon Prime Video’s NBA coverage, tweets Richard Deitsch of The Athletic. Lowe, who currently works for The Ringer after a previous stint with ESPN, will appear on Amazon’s studio show periodically throughout the NBA season.

And-Ones: LeBron, Curry, Team USA, 2026 Draft, Beverley, More

November 18th, 2025 at 4:56pm CST by Luke Adams

Asked by Steve Nash on the Mind the Game podcast about the possibility of suiting up for Team USA at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, LeBron James made it clear that’s not in his plans, while Stephen Curry indicated he’s a long shot too, per Anthony Slater of ESPN.

“You already know my answer,” James said. “I will be watching it.”

“God willing, I still have the choice and physical option where I could impact the team,” Curry said. “Never say never, but I highly doubt it. Highly doubt it.”

James and Curry teamed up for Team USA at the Olympics for the first time in 2024, defeating the hosts (France) in Paris in the gold medal game after pulling off a dramatic come-from-behind win in the semifinal against Serbia.

“We can’t top what we just did,” James said. “How we gonna top those last two games?”

We have more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Kansas guard Darryn Peterson is the first player off the board in the first 2026 mock draft published by Jeremy Woo of ESPN. Woo has BYU’s AJ Dybantsa at No. 2, Duke’s Cameron Boozer at No. 3, and Tennessee’s Nate Ament at No. 4, with UNC’s Caleb Wilson rounding out the top five.
More details have emerged related to Patrick Beverley‘s arrest for assault, with TMZ reporting that the former NBA guard is accused of punching his sister in the eye and choking her for between 20 and 30 seconds. Beverley, who has been out of the NBA since the 2023/24 season, was arrested on Friday and was charged with assault of a family/household member.
After parting ways with the Brisbane Bullets earlier this season for personal reasons, former NBA guard Javon Freeman-Liberty reengaged with the team last week and has now re-signed with the Bullets for the rest of the 2025/26 season, reports Olgun Uluc of ESPN (Twitter links). Freeman-Liberty, a former DePaul standout, appeared in 22 NBA regular season games for Toronto in 2023/24.
While the Mavericks had hoped to acquire Dennis Smith Jr.‘s G League returning rights, the Wisconsin Herd – the Bucks‘ affiliate – still holds those rights and is hopeful of having Smith join them soon, league sources tell Marc Stein (Twitter link).

NBA Insiders Talk 2025, 2026 Drafts

July 25th, 2025 at 6:04pm CST by Eli Cohen

Now that the 2025 Summer League has wrapped up, scouts and evaluators around the NBA are looking ahead to the 2026 draft and considering how this year’s draft class might perform as rookies.

Among league personnel, there’s a near-consensus that the Mavericks‘ Cooper Flagg will win Rookie of the Year, according to ESPN’s annual survey of NBA executives and scouts conducted this year by Jeremy Woo. Flagg was the overwhelming favorite, with 17 votes, followed by the Spurs‘ Dylan Harper, who picked up two votes. The Wizards’ Tre Johnson also received a vote.

Those polled speculated that while some rookies, like Johnson or Ace Bailey of the Jazz, may get a chance to shoot and score more points, Flagg’s overall contributions to a team that will likely be fighting for a play-in spot will push him over the edge.

While he didn’t receive a vote for Rookie of the Year, the Sixers‘ VJ Edgecombe was the top vote-getter for those asked who would end up the best non-Flagg pick in the draft.

“VJ might be Philly’s second-best player by the end of the season, factoring in [Joel] Embiid‘s uncertain health,” one general manager said.

When Woo’s poll respondents weighed in on the biggest draft steal, the Spurs’ Carter Bryant led the way, followed by Joan Beringer (Timberwolves) and Kasparas Jakucionis (Heat), though this question proved to be the most wide-ranging in terms of responses.

Executives also discussed the 2026 draft, which is widely anticipated to be a star-studded draft class. When asked about who the top pick would be, Kansas’ Darryn Peterson led the way with 12 votes, while BYU’s A.J. Dybantsa was a close second with eight.

Peterson is described in the article as “one of the best lead guard prospects in recent memory,” though Woo writes that given the high level of competition for the No. 1 spot, the race for the top spot is unlikely to be as open-and-shut as it was in 2025, when Flagg remained relatively unchallenged throughout the draft cycle.

“It’s a total toss-up right now — by no means is [there a] consensus yet,” one executive said.

While only Peterson and Dybantsa received votes as the probable No. 1 pick for 2026, Duke’s Cameron Boozer, Nate Ament (Tennessee), and Mikel Brown (Louisville) are also considered top prospects who could be in the mix for a top spot.

While it’s never easy to predict the future when it comes to the NBA draft, last year’s executive survey had Flagg as the top vote-getter for the number one pick, far ahead of Harper’s second-best vote tally, with Bailey and Edgecombe coming in third and fourth.

In that same poll last year, Reed Sheppard and Zach Edey were forecasted as the top candidates for Rookie of the Year, though eventual winner Stephon Castle came in a close third.

And-Ones: Dybantsa, Porzingis, Oturu, Bryant, Summer League

July 6th, 2025 at 9:36pm CST by Eli Cohen

A.J. Dybantsa was named MVP of the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup after the U.S. team beat Germany 109-76 to take home the gold medal, writes Tobias Bass of The Athletic. Both the U.S. and Germany were undefeated heading into the game.

Dybantsa, the BYU commit who is considered a strong bet to challenge for the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft, averaged 14.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.1 steals per game during the tournament. He shot 50% from the field and 84% from the free-throw line on 50 attempts, though he struggled from outside, connecting on just 2-of-18 three-pointers.

Dybantsa was also named to the U19 World Cup All-Star team alongside teammate Mikel Brown Jr., who had a strong tournament run. The 6’4″ Brown, who has committed to Louisville for next season, led Team USA in points and assists with 14.9 and 6.1, respectively, while shooting 47.6% from three and posting a nearly three-to-one assist-to-turnover ratio.

We have more from around the world of basketball:

Kristaps Porzingis is listed on the Latvian national team’s extended roster for the 2025 EuroBasket tournament, according to Eurohoops.net. He is expected to join the team after visiting with the Hawks following his trade from the Celtics. Porzingis struggled with an illness during the 2025 playoffs, but will look to bounce back with his first international competition since 2017. “We will adjust [workloads] to the health and fitness level of each player to help them be in the best possible shape as EuroBasket2025 approaches,” said head coach Luca Banchi.
Israeli basketball team Hapoel Tel Aviv has announced the signings of Elijah Bryant (via Twitter) and Daniel Oturu (via Twitter). Bryant played one year in the NBA, winning a championship with the 2021 Bucks while averaging 4.5 minutes over 11 games during the team’s playoff run. Oturu had brief stints with the Clippers and Raptors, and has been playing overseas since the 2023/24 season.
The NBA will count end-of-period heaves as team shot attempts, rather than individual player shot attempts, during Summer League, the league announced (via Twitter). This follows testing with the G League in the 2024/25 season. Three criteria must be met for this to apply: the play must originate in the backcourt, the missed shot must be attempted from at least 36 feet from the basket, and it must be attempted within the final three seconds of the first three periods in the game. This move is intended to incentivize players to shoot heaves without regard for how they might harm their shooting percentage.

And-Ones: Kokoskov, Luxury Tax Payments, 2026 Mock, Injuries, NBA TV

July 2nd, 2025 at 10:00am CST by Dana Gauruder

Hawks assistant Igor Kokoskov is leaving his position to become head coach of Turkish League team Anadolu Efes, according to Eurohoops.net. Kokoskov has signed a three-year contract.

Kokoskov has been an assistant in the NBA for 19 years, along with a stint as the head coach of the Suns during the 2018/19 season. He was also a head coach in the EuroLeague with Fenerbahce during the 2020/21 season.

Here’s more from around the international basketball world:

How much did NBA teams who stayed below the luxury tax get rewarded for keeping their salaries below the line? Non-tax teams collected $11,530,235 from the taxpaying clubs, Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report tweets.
Is it too early to talk about the 2026 draft class? Not for draft experts like The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie. He’s posted his first 2026 mock with Kansas guard Darryn Peterson, Duke forward Cameron Boozer and BYU wing A.J. Dybantsa occupying the top three spots.
Thunder executive Sam Presti believes there’s a direct correlation between the number of games played and injuries. Presti mentioned the NBA’s 65-game rule to qualify for certain awards, the condensed schedule due to the in-season tournament and the recent uptick in physicality allowed by the league, according to an ESPN story.“I think the one thing we have to do is get away from the defensive nature of trying to convince people, players and teams that there’s no connection between the loads and the injuries,” Presti said. “I think it’s — we’re kind of bordering on a level of like, it’s almost insulting.”
TNT Sports will cease production efforts on NBA TV at the end of the league’s calendar year in September, according to the Sports Business Journal’s Austin Karp. The league will begin operating the network starting Oct. 1. It will continue to carry some regular-season games during the 2025/26 season, plus WNBA, G League and other games from international leagues. One key element is that there will be far fewer live games on NBA TV once the new media-rights deal kicks in this fall with ESPN/ABC, NBC Sports and Prime Video, Karp adds.

And-Ones: 2025 Draft Grades, 2026 Class, France, Gabriel

June 28th, 2025 at 10:04am CST by Earnest Marshall

Five teams earned ‘A’ grades on Sam Vecenie’s post-draft report card for The Athletic, including four teams who had picks in the top six. The fifth team to earn an A was the Hawks, primarily for landing an unprotected 2026 first-round pick from the Pelicans to drop 10 spots in the middle of the first round.

Another 18 teams earned ‘B-‘ to ‘B+’ grades, meaning they mostly met or exceeded the value expected at their respective draft slots. Multiple clubs who only had second-round picks, like the Cavaliers and Warriors, found themselves in this tier. A few teams who ended up landing players who slid from pre-draft projections also ended up in this group, with the Jazz getting Ace Bailey at No. 5, the Heat landing Kasparas Jakucionis at No. 20 and the Thunder getting Thomas Sorber at No. 15.

That left five teams to earn a mark of ‘C’ or lower from Vecenie (Houston and Denver did not make any selections). The Pelicans were marked down for the haul they gave up to move up from No. 23 to No. 13 and select Derik Queen. The Nets were questioned for making three selections – Egor Demin, Nolan Traore and Ben Saraf – with positional overlap, while the Knicks earned a middling grade for selecting a stash player who may not make it to the league.

We have more from around the basketball world:

The 2026 draft looks to be loaded on paper, with a strong blend of returners who would have been drafted this year and high-level incoming talent. In ESPN’s first full 2026 mock draft, Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo have Darryn Peterson of Kansas as the No. 1 overall pick. A.J. Dybantsa (BYU), Cameron Boozer (Duke), Nate Ament (Tennessee) and Mikel Brown Jr. (Louisville) round out their top five. Among returning college players, Jayden Quaintance (No. 6, Kentucky) and Yaxel Lendeborg (No. 14, Michigan) are the highest-ranking.
Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report‘s top three looks identical to ESPN’s, but he has Arizona’s Koa Peat at No. 4 in his first 2026 mock draft. Another significant difference between the two boards is Baylor wing Tounde Yessoufou‘s spot — Wasserman has him at No. 6, but ESPN places him at No. 23.
France has named its 18-man preliminary roster for EuroBasket 2025, per the team (Twitter link). Bilal Coulibaly, Moussa Diabate, Ousmane Dieng, Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr and Guerschon Yabusele are the current NBA players on the roster. Former NBAers on the team include Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, Frank Ntilikina and Theo Maledon, among others.
Former NBA player Wenyen Gabriel is leaving Panathinaikos to sign with Bayern Munich in Germany, according to Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews. Gabriel played his first EuroLeague season in 2024/25, averaging 6.0 points per game, and will remain in the league by signing with Bayern. The 6’9″ big man played 150 NBA games from 2019-24 across stints with the Lakers, Pelicans, Trail Blazers, Kings and others. He averaged 4.4 PPG and 3.4 RPG for his career.

International Notes: Durant, NBA Europe, Israel, Team USA U19

June 20th, 2025 at 12:24pm CST by Luke Adams

Kevin Durant – a current member of the Suns who could be traded to a new NBA team in a matter of days – has invested in Paris Saint-Germain via Qatar Sports Investments, as Adam Crafton and Joe Vardon of The Athletic detail.

Known primarily for its soccer teams, Paris Saint-Germain also has professional handball and judo teams under its umbrella. Despite the fact that there’s already a Paris-based club in the EuroLeague, PSG is looking into the possibility of establishing a basketball team of its own as part of the NBA’s foray into Europe.

According to The Athletic’s report, Durant will consult on Paris Saint-Germain’s potential plans to expand into basketball.

Here are a few more items of interest from around the international basketball world:

Speaking of NBA Europe, Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic checks in on where things stand with the project, noting that the relationship between the NBA and EuroLeague appears to have “thawed” to some extent as of late. That could bode well for some sort of professional partnership between the two entities. “It is becoming more obvious that we have to work together,” EuroLeague CEO Paulius Motiejunas told The Athletic after meeting recently with the NBA. “I believe it is the first meeting of many where we should find ways to grow basketball. FIBA’s wishes are clear and simple and easy to get to. So it is up to both leagues to find ways to grow European basketball. Our history and fan base and teams would be a strong backbone to build on.”
Basketball activities in Israel have halted for the time being due to the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, per Alessandro Maggi of Sportando. Israel’s domestic league, which was in the midst of its finals between Hapoel Tel Aviv and Hapoel Jerusalem, had its season cut short without declaring a champion. It’s also unclear if Israel will be able to send a team to Switzerland for the upcoming U19 FIBA World Cup later this month.
USA Basketball has officially announced its roster for that U19 2025 World Cup, with A.J. Dybantsa – a contender to be the No. 1 overall pick in 2026 – and Tyran Stokes – ESPN’s top-ranked prospect in the 2026 recruiting class – among the group’s headliners. The tournament will take place in Lausanne, Switzerland from June 28 to July 6.

Kansas Commit Darryn Peterson Tops ESPN’s First 2026 Mock Draft

February 26th, 2025 at 8:49am CST by Luke Adams

We’re still about four months away from the 2025 NBA draft, but Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo of ESPN.com (Insider link) are already taking a look ahead to the 2026 draft, having published their first brief (10-player) mock draft for next year’s event.

According to Givony and Woo, NBA talent evaluators are bullish on the prospects at the very top of the 2026 draft class, with Darryn Peterson, A.J. Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer, and Nate Ament all considered legitimate candidates to become the No. 1 overall pick next year.

Peterson, a 6’6″ combo guard playing for Prolific Prep in California, is considered the current frontrunner for the No. 1 spot by ESPN’s draft experts, who say that the Kansas commit has established himself as the best player in high school basketball this season. Peterson helped cement his spot as the top player on ESPN’s 2026 board with his head-to-head performances against Dybantsa and Utah Prep, including a 61-point showing in the second game between the two.

Givony refers to Peterson as the best shot creator in the 2026 draft class, lauding his ball-handling, his ability to change speeds, his outside shooting, and his size and strength. The 18-year-old is viewed by some NBA scouts as a bigger version of Damian Lillard, Givony adds.

Givony and Woo have Dybantsa at No. 2, suggesting that’s more about Peterson’s emergence than anything Dybantsa has done wrong. The 6’9″ guard/forward, a BYU commit, has shown an ability to score from anywhere on the floor and is one of the best on-ball defenders in his class, Givony writes, noting that every NBA team is seeking wings in Dybantsa’s mold.

Boozer, ESPN’s No. 3 prospect, also has a strong case for consideration at No. 1, according to Givony, who says the son of former NBA big man Carlos Boozer has an “elite” feel for the game and has a chance to be the best player in the college basketball next season at Duke.

A 6’9″ forward, Boozer has earned comparisons to former top pick Paolo Banchero due to his varied offensive game and defensive versatility. The 17-year-old also has “a winning résumé unmatched by any prospect in recent memory,” Givony writes. He has earned a pair of gold medals in U-16 and U-17 FIBA tournaments and is a Florida state champion.

Ament, the No. 4 player on ESPN’s board, remains uncommitted for next season, with Duke, Kentucky, and Louisville among the programs in the mix to land him. The 6’11” big man is the furthest of these four prospects from reaching his long-term ceiling, but has shown intriguing potential as a shot-maker, passer, and defender, Givony writes.

Big man Jayden Quaintance, currently a freshman at Arizona State and one of the best shot blockers in the NCAA, is the No. 5 prospect in ESPN’s first mock draft for 2026.

AJ Dybantsa