![\"NEW](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AFP__20260624__2283026051__v1__HighRes__2026NbaDraftRoundOne-1782272711.jpg\")
AJ Dybantsa is congratulated by Chris Cenac Jr after he is drafted first overall by the Washington Wizards during round one of the 2026 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 23, 2026, in New York City [Arturo Holmes\/Getty Images\/AFP]<\/p>\nThe 6ft 8in (2.03m) 19-year-old forward was scooped by the Wizards after playing just one season of college basketball.<\/p>\n
Published On 24 Jun 202624 Jun 2026<\/p>\n
Towering teenager Anicet \u201cAJ\u201d Dybantsa Jr was chosen by the Washington Wizards with the number one pick in the 2026 NBA Draft on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The 6ft 9in (2.06m) 19-year-old forward was selected by the Wizards after playing just one season of college basketball with the Brigham Young University Cougars.<\/p>\n
Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list<\/p>\n
In 2025-26, Dybantsa averaged 25.5 points in 35 starts with 6.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists.<\/p>\n
Dybantsa enters the NBA after a stellar career in youth basketball, which also saw him lead the United States to the 2025 FIBA Under-19 World Cup, where he was named Most Valuable Player of the tournament.<\/p>\n
AJ Dybantsa is congratulated by Chris Cenac Jr after he is drafted first overall by the Washington Wizards during round one of the 2026 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 23, 2026, in New York City [Arturo Holmes\/Getty Images\/AFP]<\/p>\n
\u201cIt means a lot,\u201d Dybantsa told ESPN moments after his selection.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, it\u2019s just a stepping stone, and I have a lot more work to do. But it\u2019s a testament to all my hard work and discipline and the sacrifices that I\u2019ve made,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
NBA Draft so far<\/p>\n
The Utah Jazz, meanwhile, opted for University of Kansas prospect Darryn Peterson with the second pick.<\/p>\n
Like Dybantsa, the 6ft 6in guard also enters the NBA after just a single season of college basketball, where he averaged 20.2 points.<\/p>\n
A natural scorer, Peterson is seen as the perfect fit to play alongside Utah\u2019s Keyonte George as the Jazz attempt to rebuild after a dismal 22-60 season.<\/p>\n
The Memphis Grizzlies, meanwhile, chose consensus national player of the year Cameron Boozer with the third pick of the draft.<\/p>\n
Boozer is the son of two-time NBA All-Star Carlos Boozer, a 13-year NBA veteran who played for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Utah Jazz, Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers.<\/p>\n
The 18-year-old played one season with Duke University, averaging 22.5 points in 38 starts.<\/p>\n
The 6ft 9in prospect was regarded by many as the most naturally gifted player in this year\u2019s draft, combining natural all-court skills with physical heft.<\/p>\n
His college season ended in March when he suffered multiple fractures around his right eye during Duke\u2019s 73-72 defeat to the University of Connecticut in the Elite Eight round of the college competition.<\/p>\n
\u201cHonestly, man, it\u2019s crazy,\u201d Boozer said afterwards. \u201cJust a lot of happiness and joy \u2013 my whole life in a couple of seconds.\u201d<\/p>\n
Boozer, sitting alongside his parents and brothers as he spoke to ESPN, said he owed his success to his family.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a family sitting here, I wouldn\u2019t be here without these guys sitting right here,\u201d Boozer said. \u201cIt\u2019s just a great feeling to be here with them. They\u2019ve been there with me every step of the way.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 6ft 8in (2.03m) 19-year-old forward was scooped by the Wizards after playing just one season of college…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":508582,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[4290,85,46,43,2224,105,1032,1156],"class_list":["post-508581","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-basketball","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-news","tag-sport","tag-sports","tag-united-states","tag-us-canada"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508581","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=508581"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508581\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/508582"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=508581"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=508581"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=508581"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}