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It is widely known that while AJ Dybantsa handles things on the basketball court, his dad, Ace Dybantsa, handles things on the business end, talking to coaches and various business executives. This was evident during the Alabama vs. North Carolina game on Wednesday night, when the elder Dybantsa was spotted watching two of the teams interested in his son's commitment.
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The visit came as AJ Dybantsa reportedly narrowed down his choices to his final four schools: Alabama, Kansas, BYU and North Carolina. However, while some might say that Ace Dybantsa is doing this so AJ can focus on basketball, many have pointed out that it is the elder Dybantsa who is making the decisions, not the No. 1-ranked prospect in the Class of 2025.
"I know a congolese parent pops is definitely making the decision for the kid 😂😂," on X user replied.
"His dad is taking full advantage of this," another one added.
"The dad went but the kid didn’t? 😂 NIL cray cray," one X user said.
The 10th-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide won 94-79, leading several people to predict that AJ Dybantsa might choose the school. Meanwhile, others just lamented the decline of North Carolina basketball.
"So I guess he’s not gonna consider UNC smh," one person noted.
"Oh after that bs show from UNC. He’s definitely not going there," another said.
"You should never even think about playing for Hubert Davis if you are as good as AJ is," another opined.
While Ace Dybantsa was there to see two of the top contenders for his son's commitment, one of the favorites remains to be BYU, given the school's connection to AJ Dybantsa's current school, Utah Prep.
AJ Dybantsa's father has a huge stake in Utah Prep
Utah Prep was co-founded by BYU alumnus and backer Brent Woodson, who envisioned a sports powerhouse of a school. One of his plans to do this was to beef up his school's basketball team, and to do that, he had to lure AJ Dybantsa to the school. It was his father, Ace, who did all the negotiations, even traveling to Hurricane, Utah, to see the construction at the new school.
AJ played for Prolific Prep in Napa, California, for his sophomore year before transferring to Utah Prep and reclassifying to the Class of 2025. Behind the scenes, however, Ace handled business as usual, with several schools already trying to get Dybantsa to transfer. In the end, Utah Prep got the deal, as it offered Ace a $600,000 NIL deal and an ownership stake in the school.
The elder Dybantsa was well aware of the school's financial problems before getting off the ground and betting it all on AJ. However, he accepted this as a business choice and had his son transfer to Utah Prep.
