Saturday’s college basketball clash involving Darryn Peterson and No. 14 Kansas against AJ Dybantsa and No. 13 BYU drew plenty of NBA attention.
Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti, San Antonio Spurs general manager Brian Wright, Brooklyn Nets general manager Sean Marks and Indiana Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard were all in attendance for the contest.
Both Dybantsa and Peterson have generated buzz as the potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA draft.
Both freshmen have put together stellar inaugural college seasons, serving as the leading scorers on their respective teams.
Dybantsa entered Saturday’s action averaging 23.6 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 53.0 percent from the field and 31.8 percent from behind the arc.
While Peterson was limited to just 10 games prior to the clash with BYU due to injuries, he still averaged 21.6 points and 4.6 rebounds per game on 49.3/42.0/82.0 shooting splits.
Peterson was projected to be off the board with the No. 1 overall pick in the latest mock draft from Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman, while Dybantsa was selected at No. 3.
The Thunder own the best record in the NBA at 38-11, but they could end up with one of the top picks in the 2026 draft if the Los Angeles Clippers move up in the lottery. Oklahoma City owns the rights to Los Angeles’ upcoming first-round pick, as the Clippers currently hold the 11th-best lottery odds.
San Antonio is in a similar position, as the team has swap rights with the Atlanta Hawks. Atlanta’s first-rounder is currently projected at No. 14.
The Spurs could also attempt to trade up in the 2026 draft and add to their young core of Victor Wembanyama, Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper.
Meanwhile, the Pacers and Nets own the second and fifth-worst records in the NBA respectively.