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Following Potential 2025 Draftees

I can see why some people would have Kasparas ahead of Edgecombe.
He has an elite feel, passing and shot with very good size.

I think it's pretty crazy if anyone doesnt have him over Edgecombe. Like I said before, I would get it if Edgecombe had good 2 guard size, but he doesnt. Also doesnt flash much off the dribble game and his set shot is also fairly suspect (tho not bad). To me Edgecombe is more of a 2nd half of the lottery talent at this point and a great upside play at that slot, but not worth a top 5 pick.
 
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The Edgecombe hate by many posters here is sad. Once he gets into his natural environment (NBA), he's a young D-Wade – one of the very few kids in this draft with true franchise player potential.
 
The Edgecombe hate by many posters here is sad. Once he gets into his natural environment (NBA), he's a young D-Wade – one of the very few kids in this draft with true franchise player potential.
I dont know what constitutes "hate", but he just isnt a top 5 prospect at this point and it's probably going to get worse when he enters conference play.
 
I dont know what constitutes "hate", but he just isnt a top 5 prospect at this point and it's probably going to get worse when he enters conference play.
Nothing he does or doesn't do in college matters. He's an NBA player.

Guys like Kon Knueppel are college players. He's doing fine now and enjoying an inflated ranking, but he'll get eaten alive in the League.
 
AJ's dad did an interview and a couple of interesting notes from it: AJ was not informed on any NIL dollar amounts from any of the schools. Only his parents knew about the dollars being offered. 3 of the 4 final schools offered the same amount. They didn't want AJ to make his decision based on money and that is why he wasn't privy to the dollar amounts being offered by the schools.
 
Also: https://www.vanquishthefoe.com/2024...t-got-aj-dybantsa-to-byu-basketball-recruting

Utah Prep — a new school based in Hurricane, Utah — was recruiting AJ to commit to their school for his senior year of high school. Some of the donors of Utah Prep are BYU fans, and as part of the visit they wanted AJ’s parents to visit BYU campus when they came to Utah.
Ultimately, AJ’s parents (Ace and Chelsea) would tour Utah Prep and then BYU’s campus after Kevin Young was officially hired — which was not planned, but timing worked out that way.

AJ did not accompany his parents on that first BYU visit in April. Ace and Chelsea visited BYU campus without the expectation that they would meet Kevin Young — he was in the middle of the playoffs with the Phoenix Suns. Once Young received word of the Dybantsas visiting, he flew from Phoenix to Provo so he could meet with them. New assistant Brandon Dunson was present as well.

Ace and Chelsea met Kevin Young in his office, and sources told me they were blown away by his NBA pedigree and calm demeanor. Kevin sold them his vision of what he could do with AJ. Additionally on that visit to BYU, Ace and Chelsea met with AD Tom Holmoe and Deputy AD Brian Santiago in the athletic offices.

BYU had one more bullet in its chamber during the April visit. Ryan Smith and Danny Ainge were on BYU campus that day and spoke with Ace and Chelsea. They told the parents that Kevin Young could have been a NBA head coach, but took his NBA talents and pedigree to Provo instead. Ace is also a Celtics fan, and meeting former Celtic Danny Ainge was something cool for him.

One source close with the Dybantsas told me that me that this visit made a huge impression on Ace and Chelsea. During that weekend, the parents had a Sunday dinner with some of Utah Prep’s people, some of whom were BYU fans. They met influential people associated with BYU and came away impressed with the family atmosphere. They also saw Danny Ainge again that night at a neighborhood “cookie walk”, which was in the neighborhood where Danny’s brother lives.

This was all before NIL was discussed. AJ’s parents began heavily considering BYU at this point because of Kevin Young’s NBA pedigree and how welcomed they felt at BYU.


Fast forward to early June when AJ took his first unofficial visit to BYU. BYU coaches laid out the vision to AJ — NBA-centric staff, and Kevin Young knew how to utilize AJ better than anyone else in college due to his experience with players like Kevin Durant and Devin Booker. On the visit, AJ spoke with Chris Paul on the phone, who sang the praises of Kevin Young.

AJ’s official visit to BYU with his parents was the weekend of October 12, his final visit and a month before the early signing period. BYU talked more NIL numbers and hit home what they’ve pitching for months — BYU was the best place for AJ to prepare for the NBA.

AJ’s final two was between BYU and Kansas State, which I reported in November. AJ was planning to attend the Kansas State-LSU basketball game November 14. He cancelled that visit last minute, signed with BYU the next day on the last day of the Early Signing Period November 15, and then attended the BYU vs Idaho basketball game with his dad on November 16 when he was officially signed.

What’s remarkable — and likely solidified the trust the Dybantsa family has in BYU’s staff — is that AJ’s signing didn’t leak. Alabama head coach Nate Oats was in Vegas over Thanksgiving to watch AJ after he already signed with BYU. No one in the industry knew this. BYU kept it a secret.

And that underscores why AJ chose BYU — he trusts the staff and he trusts BYU. The family has trusted BYU since they set foot on campus nearly 8 months ago.
 
Pretty crazy that AJ signed with BYU back on November 15th and no one knew about it until yesterday.
 
Sorry for hijacking the thread but this is a good read: https://www.cbssports.com/college-b...e-hoops-is-a-j-dybantsa-could-be-even-better/

The biggest name of them all is the highest-rated player in high school, a rising senior named A.J. Dybantsa. The 6-foot-9 shooting guard/power wing is from Massachusetts, plays for the Oakland Soldiers on the Nike circuit and would appear to be one of the most gifted scorers to emerge from the prep ranks in the past 10-plus years.

Flagg was regarded as one of the best prospects to come out of high school in a generation.

Dybantsa might be better.

That's not merely my projection. I spent five days in Rock Hill, South Carolina, and North Augusta and took in Adidas' 3SSB (Three-Stripe Select Basketball) championship event in addition to the Peach Jam. I informally polled about two dozen coaches and scouts at the Adidas and Nike events about which prospect they liked best: Flagg, Dybantsa or another irresistible talent, 2026 blue-chipper Tyran Stokes (all three being No. 1 in their respective classes). Dybantsa received more votes than Flagg and Stokes combined.

Dybantsa's scoring ability is outrageous. It's natural to wince at big statements made about teenagers, but here's the reality of what I heard at Peach Jam over the weekend from multiple evaluators: Dybantsa's offensive impact on the court at this level at this stage of his budding basketball career is akin to basically any of the best prospects to come through the ranks over the past 20 years. He's that good. He communicates with his teammates on basically every possession, has go-go-gadget limbs, loves the mid-range just as much as the 3 (and is efficient at both), and seems to have the ability to teleport from one spot to another in a flash.

He has a preternatural ability to affect every play. His presence is ever-present. He looks bigger/rangier than any 6-9 high school player I've seen.
 
If Queen starts hitting threes at 40% like he did last game I will just need yall to bear with me okay. I will likely get wild and yall just need to let me breathe okay? I'm going to say some **** and I don't need it to be held against me.
I won’t hold it against you if you don’t hold anything I say about anything against me, deal? :p
 
I still quite like Edgecombe….but he’s definitely trending towards a Suggs like player in my mind. I love that kind of player, but he’s really lacking in the skill department and so far away I’m finding it harder and harder to believe in his chances of being a star.

If play remains the same, I think Kasparas will pass him and form a clear top 3.
 
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