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Top Recruit AJ Dybantsa Partners with Instagram at NBA All-Star Weekend

BYU signee AJ Dybantsa collaborates with social media network during basketball's biggest weekend.

Michael Ehrlich

Jan 4, 2025; Gilbert, AZ, USA; Utah Prep Academy forward AJ Dybantsa (3) against Faith Family Academy (TX) during the Hoophall West High School Invitational at Highland High School.
Jan 4, 2025; Gilbert, AZ, USA; Utah Prep Academy forward AJ Dybantsa (3) against Faith Family Academy (TX) during the Hoophall West High School Invitational at Highland High School. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
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Top high school basketball recruit AJ Dybantsa is already among the top NIL athletes in all of sports and hasn't even set foot on the hardwood yet for his future school, BYU.

The Utah Prep superstar and five-star prospect has partnerships with the likes of Nike and Red Bull, plus a rumored multi-million dollar deal to attend BYU next year.

During basketball's biggest weekend — the NBA All-Star — the 6-9 forward added a collaboration with the world's largest social media network to offer an inside look at his experience.

Dybantsa worked with Meta's Instagram while in San Francisco for NBA All-Star Weekend and Nike's "Future Game" to showcase his skills and personality. Shot using the Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses, the collaboration post on Instagram was shared to the platform account's 685 million followers, a huge opportunity for Dybantsa to grow his community.

Sharing his thoughts on the experience playing in Nike's showcase event and inspiring the next generation of basketball players, Dybantsa said: “It’s cool because once I was a kid in the stands watching my favorite high school player. Now, I just want to inspire kids to pursue their dreams.”

Beyond his collaboration with Instagram, Nike showcased their future superstar partner in more ways than one. The brand coordinated the highly-anticipated debut of their Nike G.T. Future sneaker on the feet of Dybantsa during the "Future Game."

In a crowded weekend of footwear news and debuts, Dybantsa and rapper Wale — who wore a different colorway of the G.T. Future — were the talk of the event, showing the brand's next model in the Greater Than Series.

The brand further celebrated their partnership with - although his team lost 66-57 loss to Dynamic Prep, he poured in 21 points and six rebounds — Nike shared a hype video of their top NIL signee, in a collab post on Instagram with the Nike Elite Youth Basketball account.

The McDonald's All-American and consensus top recruit in the country, Dybantsa was recently named a Naismith High School Player of the Year semifinalist.

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Michael Ehrlich
MICHAEL EHRLICH

Michael Ehrlich is a seasoned sports marketing executive with experience across the global sports brand, athlete representation, media and education sides of the business. The Founder and CEO of Playbook Marketing, Ehrlich consults with brands on all things NIL and athlete partnerships, advises student-athletes on their personal brand building endeavors and is an adjunct professor at his alma mater, the University of Southern California where he teaches a course on athlete communications and marketing. As a writer, his previous bylines include Boardroom, Business of College Sports, DIME Magazine and UPROXX, among others. You can follow him across social media at @MichaelEhrlich and reach out via michael@playbook-marketing.com

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