AJ Dybantsa and the United States were unstoppable at this year's FIBA U17 World Cup in Istanbul. The U.S. cruised to a seventh consecutive gold medal on Sunday, taking down Italy in the final, 129-88. Dybantsa (Brockton, Mass.), the top-ranked high school player in the country, tallied 14 points, four rebounds and three assists in...
AJ Dybantsa and the United States were unstoppable at this year's FIBA U17 World Cup in Istanbul.
The U.S. cruised to a seventh consecutive gold medal on Sunday, taking down Italy in the final, 129-88.
Dybantsa (Brockton, Mass.), the top-ranked high school player in the country, tallied 14 points, four rebounds and three assists in the victory.
Dominating the U17 World Cup is typical for the U.S.; they're 51-0 since joining competition in 2010. But this year's 64.3-point average margin of victory represented the largest in team history. The landslide run included a 96-point win against the Philippines in the round of 16.
"We call it pay day. All the work that you put in. I told them when you work a job and you work every day, by the time you get to the end of that week or month, it's pay day. We put in a lot of work this last month or so, and today we wanted to get paid," U.S. head coach Sharman White said after the final. "These guys came out laser-focused and executed the game plan. They played together and for each other, and they did it the right way. We are just extremely proud of them and proud of our USA Basketball junior national team program. It gives them that stage to showcase their talents as a group. So I am proud of them."
Dybantsa averaged 14.1 points, 4.1 assists, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.6 steals in 20.4 minutes across the seven World Cup games. His best performance came in the group stage against France, when the 6-foot-9 wing racked up 19 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals, and 4 assists. Dybantsa also made a viral moment with his powerful transition dunk in the semifinals against New Zealand.
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Even in Turkey, Dybantsa already has fans. Yağız Uçak and Gizem Uçak made a poster for the young star, who later met briefly with them outside the arena.
Dybantsa will finish out the AAU season with Oakland Soldiers, competing at Peach Jam this month. He'll then join Utah Prep for his senior season. As long as the highly-touted prospect continues on his current trajectory, we'll likely see him in a Team USA jersey again soon.
