Washington Wizards not all-in on AJ Dybantsa, considering trading down in NBA Draft

This is not a clear-cut number-one-pick type of season, no matter how much momentum AJ Dybantsa carries on draft night.

As great as Dybantsa has proven to be during his freshman year with BYU basketball (leading the nation in points, dragging the smoldering heaps of rubble remaining on Kevin Young's self-destructed basketball team all the way through two Big 12 Tournament wins and a 6-seed in the NCAA Tournament), he's not Victor Wembanyama among Brandon Millers and Scoot Hendersons. Nor is he even Cooper Flagg among Dylan Harpers and VJ Edgecombes.

No, as fantastic and nearly guaranteed for an exceptional career as this 6'9" stallion of a BYU product is, the competition for the number-one pick is much heavier than in years prior, with up to four players having a legitimate chance at becoming the number-one selection -- to varying degrees of sincerity.

Darryn Peterson is the natural yang to Dybantsa's yin. With his draft profile every bit as potent as Dybantsa's, but at the guard position, Peterson is a 6'6" bullet whose high school tape has many wondering if his cramping issues were just a phase, or have permanently hampered his game (everybody goes through a phase in college. You'll realize it soon enough, those of you reading this article instead of finishing your homework).

The main reason you see Dybantsa pulling so far ahead of Peterson in so many mocks is simple: Darryn Peterson had trouble staying on the court under legendary head coach Bill Self. Be it the aforementioned injury scares or simply taking himself out of contention when he felt he had made his point, Peterson would have been a coach's nightmare had it not been for his effortless and supernatural scoring ability.

Cameron Boozer, the National Player of the Year, and Caleb Wilson, Boozer's counterpart up on Chapel Hill, have also found their names thrown up as potential top selections, with these four names rounding out a tier all their own. Standing high above their tower and scoffing at the lowly peasants beneath, AJ Dybantsa and his peers see their NBA career reflected directly before their faces. The waters down below get a bit murkier.

Here's the point: AJ Dybantsa is the favorite to be the number-one overall pick. But by no means is he the guaranteed selection at that spot.

According to Jake Fischer, who was in attendance as a media representative with Bleacher Report for the lottery results, Michael Winger, the manager of the Washington Wizards, told him directly that, "... the Wizards will at least consider trading down."

"[Winger] insisted that this is 'not a savior moment' for Washington," Fischer continued. "Given that the franchise just traded for two former All-Stars in Trae Young and Anthony Davis on top of the slew of recent lottery picks it already has accumulated. He added that, in accordance with Wizards general manager Will Dawkins' prospect evaluations, Washington will not rule out a move downward if Dawkins determines there are two or three players that the Wizards are eager to come away with.”

The Utah Jazz are obviously a prime candidate to bite at any opportunity to secure AJ Dybantsa, a budding superstar who's spent the last two years of his life calling Utah his home, and could quickly become the cornerstone of a franchise primed and ready to compete for the playoffs this season after three years of being the NBA's tanking poster boy.

Still, considering how Darryn Peterson could be a more natural fit with the Jazz -- filling in for the still-incubating Ace Bailey at the shooting guard position, and adding a much-needed defensive presence alongside Keyonte George -- I question the likelihood that Utah gives up too much to take one step up in the draft order. Walking away with either Dybantsa or Peterson, it's hard to imagine the Jazz would feel buyer's remorse leaving the Barclays Center.

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