AJ Dybantsa drama continues as Wizards stay undecided into draft week
AJ Dybantsa drama continues as Wizards stay undecided into draft week
The Washington Wizards have spent the better part of two months signaling openness to moving off the No. 1 overall pick. The Utah Jazz, the team with the most obvious motivation to capitalize on that signal, are not biting.
NBA insider Jake Fischer reported that Washington entered the weekend before the draft still undecided on its top pick, while throwing cold water on the idea that Utah will make a serious push to trade up from No. 2 to guarantee landing BYU forward AJ Dybantsa.
“Sources maintain that the Wizards entered the weekend still undecided,” Fischer wrote. “I’ve been told that the idea of Utah trying to trade up from No. 2 to ensure it can select BYU’s Dybantsa should be classified as unlikely.”
Why the Utah connection to Dybantsa never translated into trade action
The Dybantsa-to-Utah storyline has carried real substance all spring. He spent his senior year of high school at Utah Prep before his one season at BYU, the alma mater of Jazz owner Ryan Smith, vice chairman Danny Ainge and president of basketball operations Austin Ainge.
He attended numerous Jazz games in courtside seats during his year in Provo. When asked directly about trading up to No. 1, Smith told the Deseret News, “Everything should be on the table.”
Despite the connection, no real traction has developed. Andscape’s Marc Spears reported that Utah did reach out to Washington about trading up, but Wizards president Michael Winger’s public comments about being open to trading down haven’t been matched by an offer Washington considers worth accepting.
If Utah wants Dybantsa as badly as the connections suggest, the price for moving up one spot is the question nobody on either side has answered publicly yet.
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