The Big 12’s New Rivalry Is Aj Dybantsa Vs. Darryn Peterson As Top Nba Prospects

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — On nan floor, AJ Dybantsa and Darryn Peterson guidelines retired successful a crowd. It doesn’t return much than a fewer possessions to spot nan superstar talents that person popped disconnected nan page since AAU hoops arsenic 14- and 15-year-olds. 

But Wednesday astatine Big 12 media day, days earlier they’ll make their much-anticipated assemblage debuts, nan 2 apical contenders did their champion to blend in. Peterson roamed astir successful his team-issued bluish quarter-zip pullover and a afloat buttoned polo, while Dybantsa fto his million-dollar grin outshine nan 2 gem studs successful his ears. Both stopped short of immoderate bulletin-board comments astir their NBA draught stock. Peterson moreover stopped earlier leaving nan shape to threat a image of nan jumbotron, a motion of nan 18-year-old still getting utilized to life successful nan spotlight.

Peterson and Dybantsa are each once-in-a-generation-type prospects, and they’ll deed nan level successful nan aforesaid conference: Peterson for a blueblood astatine Kansas, Dybantsa arsenic nan most-anticipated enlistee successful BYU history. And nan stakes for their lone assemblage play couldn’t beryllium immoderate higher, pinch nan No. 1 prime successful adjacent year’s draught very overmuch up for grabs and nan 2 of them considered nan favorites. 

In precocious school, Dybantsa spent astir of nan clip since he reclassified into nan 2025 graduating people arsenic nan No. 1 subordinate successful his class, a merchandise of his explosive ’23 summertime erstwhile he put up immense numbers astatine nan NBPA Top 100 Camp and Peach Jam. But nan tide started to move precocious successful past year’s precocious schoolhouse play erstwhile Peterson put connected an epic capacity successful a showdown betwixt his Prolific Prep squad and Dybantsa’s Utah Prep. Peterson’s 61-point outburst successful an 88–86 win that has racked up hundreds of thousands of YouTube views is already nan worldly of legend, a showing that has near a lasting belief connected talent evaluators crossed nan country. Dybantsa? He scored only 49 that day, if that sets nan reside for what nan back-and-forth mightiness look for illustration betwixt these 2 elite prospects. 

Peterson ended arsenic nan No. 1 imaginable successful 247 Sports’s rankings, while Dybantsa kept nan No. 1 composite rank crossed nan awesome services. The 2 fig to duke it retired (along pinch different imaginable challengers) each nan measurement until precocious June, mounting nan shape for a title to nan apical spot dissimilar galore we’ve seen successful caller assemblage hoops memory. The play of nan 2022 draught betwixt Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren and Jabari Smith Jr. was highly entertaining to watch play out, and this season’s showdown pits moreover higher-level prospects and possibly moreover much draft-night drama. The NBA play started Tuesday night, and those willing successful tanking amended commencement stacking those losses. 

“I don’t cognize that I tin retrieve successful a precocious schoolhouse people 2 players coming into this convention [like this],” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “[Especially] successful specified a competitory precocious schoolhouse class, because there’s different bully players retired location too these two, that person nan chance to beryllium a first-team All-American-type guy.”

Gone is nan Big 12’s double-round-robin schedule, a casualty of nan expanded 16-team league. That intends conscionable 1 guaranteed gathering betwixt Peterson and Dybantsa, group for Jan. 31 successful Lawrence, Kans. A 2nd gathering could hap successful nan Big 12 tourney successful March should nan bracket play retired nan correct way. More NBA decision-makers will flock to that late-January showdown than immoderate assemblage crippled this season, particularly if some players commencement nan play astatine nan complaint astir expect.

Peterson keeps a database by his TV of nan biggest games connected his Kansas schedule. On it? Games against immoderate of nan different apical prospects who’ll play assemblage hoops this season. He’ll play different apical constituent defender Mikel Brown Jr. successful an accumulation Friday astatine Louisville, projected top-five prime Cameron Boozer and Duke astatine Madison Square Garden successful November and could spot different successful five-star Nate Ament pinch Tennessee astatine nan Players Era Festival later that month. And yes, it’s safe to opportunity nan showdown pinch Dybantsa made Peterson’s list. 

Dybantsa says he’s approaching nan looming showdown a spot differently. In his eyes, it’s conscionable different game.

“I ain’t circling it,” Dybantsa said. “I don’t cognize if he’s circling it, but I’m not.” 

AJ Dybantsa was nan composite No. 1 imaginable crossed nan awesome ranking services. / Sophia Scheller-Imagn Images

The 2 are astatine slightest friends disconnected nan court, having won a golden badge together astatine nan FIBA U16 Americas tourney successful 2023. That team, which besides featured Boozer and respective different now-elite prospects, went 6–0 successful nan tourney and won by an mean of 64 points per crippled (no, that’s not a typo). But there’s intelligibly an knowing betwixt nan 2 budding superstars of what’s to travel and nan acold reality that only 1 tin declare nan apical spot adjacent June. 

“Regardless if you want to aliases not, erstwhile you’re astir personification truthful much, yet y’all build a narration pinch each other,” Peterson says. “But relationships disconnected tribunal and connected tribunal are different. Off court, play nan game, talk trash pinch each other, cool pinch each other, but connected nan court, we are trying to trim each other’s heads off.” 

“We’re very competitive,” Dybantsa said of nan remainder of nan class. “I deliberation we’re 1 of nan amended freshman classes to travel in, successful my opinion. We’re friends disconnected nan court, but erstwhile we’re trying to get connected nan court, we’re going astatine it.”

That sentiment has been echoed privately by galore NBA scouts. One told Sports Illustrated last summertime he felt it was “the champion people successful a really agelong time,” and beardown early assemblage starts for Dybantsa (30 points successful an accumulation vs. Nebraska) and Boozer (33 points, 12 rebounds successful an accumulation vs. UCF) person done small to stymie NBA enthusiasm. Imagine 3 Cooper Flagg aliases Zion Williamson–level talents successful 1 assemblage hoops play … and 2 successful nan aforesaid league? That’s what nan Big 12 will acquisition successful 2025–26, and nan yearlong conflict betwixt nan 2 front-runners for nan apical spot successful nan draught is simply a communicative that will predominate what is annually possibly nan sport’s apical conference.

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