PROVO, Utah — The smiling image of AJ Dybantsa welcomes visitors to the bookstore located within BYU’s Wilkinson Student Center, positioned at the very heart of the campus.
Cream-colored T-shirts available for purchase are adorned with his likeness, showcasing the No. 3 jersey worn by the freshman sensation for the Cougars, his distinct AJ autograph, and five small stars. Below this, a memorable quote from the nation’s top recruit is printed, stemming from his December 2024 ESPN declaration that “It’s just for the bigger picture,” a statement that sent ripples through the college basketball landscape when he committed to a program unaccustomed to acquiring such generational talent.
Now, less than eighteen months later, as Dybantsa embarks on what will be his sole appearance in March Madness, those very words resonate for both the athlete and the institution striving to integrate into the sport’s established elite.
Dybantsa embodies the heightened ambition now present at BYU, an institution owned and financially supported by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The athletic department has fully embraced the era of name, image, and likeness (NIL) and revenue sharing, challenging previous assumptions about BYU’s limitations while simultaneously navigating how to reconcile the LDS Church’s mission with substantial investment in sports for victory.
“BYU has always aspired to demonstrate its capability to compete with the top programs,” stated BYU coach Kevin Young.
Securing Dybantsa from his hometown of Brockton, Massachusetts, presented the Cougars with a unique opportunity. Reports concerning Dybantsa’s NIL compensation for a single year have fluctuated between $4 million and $6 million, widely believed to be among the highest payouts for a player to date. While coach Young chose not to confirm the precise figure, he indicated that Dybantsa could have secured an even larger sum had he opted for a more historically dominant program.
Young’s hiring occurred in April 2024, following five years on the Phoenix Suns’ coaching staff. To effectively compete for elite prospects like Dybantsa, Young pledged to manage BYU basketball with the professionalism of an NBA franchise. This approach galvanized a renewed dedication from fans and, crucially, from affluent boosters. Many of these benefactors originate from the “Silicon Slopes,” a bustling hub for technology companies and startups situated between Salt Lake City and Provo.
Dybantsa, a dominant 6-foot-9 player who idolized Kevin Durant’s effortless scoring style, leads college basketball with 25.3 points per game. He has played every minute of five games in the last month alone and spectacularly scored 40 points in BYU’s Big 12 tournament opener last week. He is projected to be among the first three selections in the upcoming NBA Draft and holds NIL endorsements with major brands such as Nike, Red Bull, and Fanatics.
His extraordinary talent and limited tenure at the university imbue this NCAA Tournament appearance with immense fascination. The Cougars, holding a 23-11 record (9-9 in conference), secured a No. 6 seed in the West region and are slated to face No. 11 seed Texas this Thursday in Portland, Oregon.
BYU experienced a decline in performance late in the season after an impressive 17-2 start that saw them ranked as high as No. 7 nationally. The Cougars suffered a significant setback on February 14 with the ACL tear of starter Richie Saunders, have displayed defensive vulnerabilities, and require increased support for Dybantsa and key secondary guard Rob Wright III.
“When you bring in a talent like AJ, the immediate thought for many is, ‘Final Four or bust,’” remarked Jimmer Fredette, the 2011 national player of the year whose deep-range shooting propelled one of BYU’s three total Sweet 16 runs. “Though injuries have clearly complicated matters, public expectations do not simply diminish overnight.”
These high expectations are fueled not only by the passionate commitment of BYU’s fan base but also by the significant financial outlays aimed at establishing a program that attracts top recruits globally.
In the initial days after his appointment, Young hosted a dinner at The Annex, BYU’s basketball practice facility—a crucial early initiative. There, he articulated his vision to influential boosters, outlining plans for staff development and, most importantly, how he would elevate the caliber of recruits BYU could pursue and ultimately sign.
“I believe that resonated with many of the individuals who financially support this institution,” Young commented.
In Kevin Young’s inaugural season, BYU made the program’s third-ever Sweet 16 and went 26-10. (Chris Gardner / Getty Images)
Young informed The Athletic last week in Kansas City that BYU’s revenue-share salary structure for its roster this season adopted a model akin to the NBA: three players—Dybantsa, Wright, and Saunders—are designated “max” players, with the remaining allocated funds distributed among the rest of the roster. Wright, previously a five-star high school recruit, is reportedly earning $3 million this season after transferring to BYU from Baylor.
“Our approach was not particularly complex,” asserted Young, who has recently countered the perception that BYU issues limitless checks.
The university asserts that its NIL strategy has been both prompt and methodical, and that its financial outlays are sustainable. Nevertheless, BYU’s actions have still raised eyebrows among the broader college basketball community.
“Significant discussions revolved around reaching the pinnacle,” said BYU vice president Keith Vorkink. “Primarily, our involvement in this domain surprised some, given our identity as a faith-based university.”
According to Patrick Q. Mason, chair of Mormon history and culture at Utah State University, the question of whether BYU should invest heavily in lavish athletic facilities and top-tier coaching salaries has caused considerable debate among church leaders in recent decades. In a podcast interview last year, Elder Clark G. Gilbert, who previously served as commissioner of the church education system and was confirmed as a member of the Church’s Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in February, expressed his reluctance for BYU to engage in a bidding war for players at any cost.
“We must never descend into a pay-for-play culture,” Gilbert declared on the podcast. “Such a development would undermine the very essence of BYU. While it’s tempting to acquire individual players, if they do not align with our mission, it would dismantle everything.”
Athletes at BYU participate in a distinctive cultural environment. The core mission of BYU Athletics centers on Jesus Christ, aiming to inspire others by embodying His principles. All faculty, coaches, and students are required to sign and uphold the school’s honor code, which mandates abstinence from premarital sex, alcohol, drugs, and vaping.
When questioned about his favorite academic subject, Dybantsa consistently informed TV announcers in pre-broadcast meetings that it was his Book of Mormon class, a mandatory religious course for all BYU students.
“I simply have to respect the regulations, just like at home: you respect the house rules,” Dybantsa conveyed to The Athletic.
Recruiting a consistent influx of non-LDS athletes to BYU was once considered a formidable obstacle; this is no longer the situation. The university even promotes its honor code as an advantage for athletes seeking an environment free from distractions.
However, alleged breaches of this code inevitably attract scrutiny.
In July, starting quarterback Jake Retzlaff withdrew from BYU and transferred to Tulane following a civil lawsuit filed in May by a woman accusing him of sexual assault and battery. The lawsuit was subsequently dropped. Retzlaff denied the accusations, asserting the encounter was consensual, but reportedly faced a potential seven-game suspension for violating the honor code. In November, BYU junior guard Kennard Davis Jr., a transfer from Southern Illinois, served a two-game suspension after an arrest on suspicion of driving under the influence and marijuana possession.
Yet, adherence to the university’s values has not impeded the revenue-generating athletic programs from broadening their recruiting horizons.
Under the leadership of basketball coach Young and football coach Kalani Sitake, BYU athletics has become a viable option for all blue-chip recruits, not exclusively those of the Latter-day Saint faith. In Young’s tenure of less than three years, BYU has secured commitments from three five-star players—former guard Egor Demin (a projected lottery pick in the 2025 NBA Draft), Dybantsa, and incoming recruit Bruce Branch III—none of whom identify as LDS.
Between 1999 and 2023, every starting quarterback for BYU had ties to the Church. In recent years, BYU’s starting quarterbacks have included Jewish and Catholic athletes. In 2022, under former head coach Mark Pope, BYU basketball featured an entire starting five composed of non-LDS athletes for the first time in school history. Dybantsa is Catholic, and Wright is Christian but not LDS. Furthermore, this year’s BYU roster boasts six international players, continuing a trend initiated by Pope before he departed for his alma mater, Kentucky.
A more inclusive environment for individuals outside the LDS Church has, according to Mason, allowed BYU to extend its influence and enabled its athletics department to adapt. There simply aren’t enough elite LDS athletes to maintain competitiveness at the Power 4 level based solely on church membership.
“It’s impossible to sustain a 90 to 95 percent LDS roster in contemporary college athletics,” Mason observed. “This aligns conveniently with the Church’s evolving theological stance, where it has become far more comfortable with individuals of other faiths or no faith at all, a significant shift from as recently as 30 years ago.”
Although no direct funding is allocated from the Church to the BYU athletic department, a cultural influence from the top down persists. Mason noted that the “fork in the road” was not disregarded when BYU, after a decade as an FBS independent in football and another decade within the West Coast Conference basketball landscape, transitioned into a power conference, the Big 12, in 2023. This move has presented its own set of difficulties, as both the BYU football and basketball teams have been subjected to derogatory chants targeting the LDS Church at four different conference opponents’ venues.
“It represented a pivotal choice: either toward national athletic irrelevance or toward prominence,” Mason stated. “However, achieving prominence necessitated substantial financial investment, and coincidentally, over the past half-century, Latter-day Saints have emerged as one of the nation’s more affluent minority groups.”
This phenomenon has coincided with the remarkable economic boom in Utah over the last decade, particularly highlighted by the Wasatch Front region, which hosts over 1,000 tech companies and startups, including major players like Adobe, Oracle, and Microsoft establishing offices or campuses. Ryan Smith, the billionaire owner of the Utah Jazz and Utah Mammoth, is a BYU alumnus and a fervent supporter of BYU athletics.
Just like Dybantsa, T-shirts featuring Fredette remain on sale in the BYU bookstore. When college basketball enthusiasts recall BYU, they often picture Fredette launching shots from deep within the half-court. Fredette mentioned that when the NIL era commenced in 2021, numerous wealthy donors contacted him, eager to financially support this new chapter for BYU basketball.
“Everyone expressed their anticipation of making a significant impact on these programs,” Fredette shared.
In February 2025, a BYU alumnus and donor asserted to ESPN, “You won’t outbid us.”
More recently, BYU’s benefactors demonstrated their influence once more by assisting in the retention of Sitake, who at the last moment declined a lucrative contract offer from Penn State. Jason McGowan, founder of Crumbl Cookie, a Utah-based dessert chain, informed The Athletic that donors exerted “very substantial” efforts to keep Sitake and his coaching staff in Provo after the team reached the Big 12 title game.
These are Dybantsa’s concluding days in BYU blue, and he has certainly fulfilled expectations, potentially positioning the Cougars as an enticing underdog for some bracket analysts.
BYU is making its 33rd appearance in the NCAA Tournament, yet continues its quest for a first Final Four berth. The Cougars last reached the Elite Eight in 1981, led by star guard Danny Ainge, known for his distinctive bowl cut. They achieved a Sweet 16 appearance in Young’s initial season last spring.
Dybantsa’s long-held aspirations for his tenure at BYU include capturing a national championship.
“I need to secure six consecutive victories,” he declared last weekend on “The Winning Formula” podcast.
Building upon Dybantsa’s accomplishments this season, Young and his coaching staff successfully secured their third five-star recruit in as many years earlier this month. On March 4, Branch, a 6-foot-7 prospect from Gilbert, Arizona, publicly announced his decision live on ESPN.
He unzipped his jacket, revealing a royal blue BYU jersey bearing the No. 3 — precisely like Dybantsa’s.