BROCKTON, Mass. — Hailing from Brockton, AJ Dybantsa was selected number one overall by the Washington Wizards in Tuesday’s NBA Draft. He’s the first athlete born and raised in Massachusetts to be selected number one overall in any of the four major U.S. sports drafts (NBA, NHL, NFL, and MLB).
Dybantsa, 6’9, 217 pounds, averaged 25.5 points per game this past season with the BYU Cougars. In January, Dybantsa passed Celtics legend Danny Ainge for the most points posted by a BYU freshman in a game, recording 43 points in a 91–78 victory over Utah.
Dybantsa played high school basketball at St. Sebastian’s School in Needham. He was offered scholarships from all the top universities, including Boston College, but Dybantsa said he chose BYU to play ball and keep a low profile off the court.
The son of a Jamaican immigrant mother and a father from the Republic of Congo, Dybantsa is the latest athlete produced by the “City of Champions.” 80 years ago, heavyweight champion Rocky “the Brockton Blockbuster” Marciano trained at the old fire station on Pleasant Street - a building that had its electrical wiring installed by Thomas Edison. Fellow champion “Marvelous” Marvin Hagler also sculpted his legendary boxing career in Brockton. Both have statutes in the city.
Brockton also produced Ken MacAfee, a 3x All-American tight end who caught passes from Joe Montana at Notre Dame. He was third in voting for the Heisman Trophy in 1977 and won the National Title that same year. He played two seasons in the NFL with the San Francisco 49ers.
There’s plenty more on the list who were either born or raised in Brockton: Patriots WR Greg McMurtry, pro golfer Megan Khang, Cubs catcher Mike Gordon, and Lou Montgomery - the first Black athlete at Boston College.
There’s a certain aura that comes with being the first overall selection in any major sports draft. The names of both successful players and those branded as “busts” are remembered almost equally. Notable number one picks in the NBA include newly crowned champion Karl Anthony-Towns, Allen Iverson, Dwight Howard, Tim Duncan, LeBron James, Shaquille O’Neal, Patrick Ewing, Magic Johnson, and Bill Walton.
Then there’s the names remembered infamously: Ben Simmons - taken before Jayson Tatum, Markelle Fultz, Anthony Bennett, and Sam Bowie - “the man drafted before Michael Jordan.”
Dybantsa joins the Washington Wizards, a team that has lost nearly 200 games over the past three seasons. Their last series win in the playoffs came in 2017. Prior to Dybantsa, the franchise’s most recent number one selection was John Wall in 2010.
Regardless of expectations from the Wizards, fans, pundits, or anyone else, it’s a good day for Brockton and for the state that invented basketball.
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