Patrick Kinahan: Matching outrageous hype proving hard for Dybantsa

PROVO — Living up to the hype, especially in today's frenzied sensationalism of social media, is one of the more difficult tasks to accomplish in the sports world.

Fair or not, those saddled with huge outside expectations are forced to assume a heavy burden. They either match the assigned levels or not; often there is no in between.

The latest example is BYU's AJ Dybantsa, the possible No. 1 pick in the upcoming NBA draft. The freshman phenom came in as the most hyped athlete in school history, publicized more than any player entering college basketball this season.

Already bombarded with acclaim and fame, a rare combination for a teenager, the gifted player has attracted nationwide attention for several years. Listed by ESPN as the game's top high school recruit after his freshman season, Dybantsa eschewed the game's traditional powerhouses in choosing BYU during an announcement on the network in December 2024.

Following a Sweet 16 appearance in Kevin Young's initial season as coach, with a superstar coming aboard, the bar was set at the program's first Final Four appearance. As the midway point of the Big 12 schedule approaches, it seems disappointing that the Cougars are in seventh place at 5-3.

Silly as it may be for a player who turned 19 years old last week, with plenty of season remaining, Dybantsa shoulders much of the responsibility for the three conference losses. He did not play well enough, according to outside expectations, in any of them.

"AJ demonstrated the things that he could do at a high level," Young countered after BYU lost to Kansas 90-82 on Saturday.

The game between the two ranked teams featured the subplot of Dybantsa vs. Darryn Peterson, the potential top picks in this year's NBA draft. With a host of team executives on hand, Peterson dominated early before cramping kept him glued to the bench in the second half.

Not attempting a shot until nearly halfway through the first half, Dybantsa finished with a respectable 17 points but needed to make more of an impact felt in the marquee match-up. Peterson, who drained two huge late 3-pointers in Kansas' win over Texas Tech on Monday, is currently viewed as the better player despite leg injuries that have limited him to 12 games.

"Even with his cramping woes, Darryn Peterson is the clear choice at the top of a loaded 2026 draft," college basketball and NBA draft analyst Kevin Sweeney posted on social media. "Short of his leg being amputated he's the No. 1 pick in the draft."

In the other conference losses to No. 13 Texas Tech and No. 1 Arizona, Dybantsa combined to make only 12 of 41 shots. Tempting as it is to point fingers that extend far beyond one player, slow starts continue to plague the Cougars in their losses to ranked teams.

On a team with little depth, notably due to season-ending injuries to two rotation players, BYU will need its best player to dominate in the manner Dybantsa did in scoring 43 points in the recent win over cellar-dwelling Utah.

Plenty of tests await the Cougars against the games remaining against ranked conference teams and the anticipated appearance next month in the NCAA Tournament.

"Not worried," Young said of the failures against top competition. "That's the blessing and the curse of being in this league. It feels like every night, for the most part, is a night where you have an opportunity to get a big win. We just try to focus on what's in front of us — that's kind of been my message to the guys ever since I got here.

"We're a battle tested group. We're a couple of shots away from being able to have some of those. For me, that just gets more fire in the belly to get it right."

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