BYU basketball is going to look very different next season, thanks to an influx of talent via traditional high school recruiting alongside the transfer portal. And while transfer additions like Rob Wright and Kennard Davis will certainly draw plenty of attention during their stint with the Cougars, the main event in Provo will be AJ Dybantsa, the number one prospect in the 2025 recruiting class.
Dybantsa selected BYU over legendary programs like Kansas and North Carolina, instilling a conviction within Cougar Nation that Kevin Young's program stretches well beyond the hypothetical -- BYU basketball is a serious contender for the national championship next season, and is already developing sure-thing NBA talent.
That NBA talent has officially arrived on campus.
Starting with AJ's teammate at Utah Prep, 7-foot shot blocking wall Xavion Staton, who announced his arrival in Provo via his social channels.
Xavion is like a giraffe with a vicious craving for rejections. Like a power-hungry CEO who derives pleasure from denying others, Xavion cannot be satisfied until the opposition's proposal at the rim meets a harsh and unforgiving "no".
He joined Dybantsa for both of their senior seasons at Utah Prep after announcing his commitment to BYU basketball, and was the first to drop onto the scene with the Cougars.
But the highest-rated recruit in program history wasn't far behind, announcing his arrival soon after.
As much as I like to ignore them, my pessimistic tendencies have long pestered my subconscious with thoughts of "just wait until he flips his commitment", or "he's never actually going to play for BYU". But take a look at that: AJ Dybantsa is a BYU Cougar, and this basketball program has life beyond what anyone could have ever expected in the slightest.
The future of BYU hoops has arrived on campus, and the timeline has been set in motion.