Nike drops commercial after former BYU star AJ Dybantsa goes No. 1 overall

Former BYU basketball star AJ Dybantsa is off to Washington, D.C., to play for the Washington Wizards.

Dybantsa was selected No. 1 overall in the 2026 NBA draft on Tuesday night.

Moments after the selection, Dybantsa’s shoe sponsor, Nike Basketball, dropped a commercial celebrating the path to becoming the No. 1 pick.

Nike dropped an AJ Dybantsa commercial

“A future that’s monumental. Now show them, @aj_dybantsa,” Nike Basketball wrote on X.

A future that’s monumental.

Now show them, @aj_dybantsa. pic.twitter.com/PKxPH0838F

— Nike Basketball (@nikebasketball) June 24, 2026

Within the commercial, there’s footage of Dybantsa competing in high school, at BYU, and as a young hooper growing up in Brockton, Massachusetts.

“People see something historic and think it’s destiny. But we know it takes decisions,” Wale, the narrator of the AJ Dybantsa Nike commercial said. “Like blue chip over bluebloods. Chasing the best competition. Again…and again…and again. Long before the rankings, the attention, before any of that. It starts with one decision. To take the craft seriously. That’s how you make history. And when the greats decide to do something truly monumental, they do it in D.C.”

At the end of the commercial, it reads, “The wait is over.”

Washington Wizards star player

The Wizards have definitely been waiting for a superstar talent like Dybantsa for years. Dybantsa is the first No. 1 pick to go to Washington since John Wall in 2010.

Dybantsa is one of the few Nike athletes who has his own logo. That was unveiled weeks ago during the NBA draft process.

During his one season at BYU, Dybantsa wore a different pair of Nikes in each game.

Some of the Nikes that Dybantsa wore include PE Nike GT Cut 4s in a Spider-Man theme, Kobe 6s, and Book 2s, among others.

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSL and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio.

Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper.

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