Who says his teammates are going to be on lower than normal NIL deals? I get the impression that Ryan Smith (who is worth like $2.5 billion) is going to try to really put BYU into the national title hunt once he lands AJ. Why would he spend $5 mil on one guy and not be willing to spend an extra 2 or 3 mil to land a couple/few more top end prospects to surround AJ?
If BYU gets Dybantsa, look for them to be a pretty significant player in the portal next spring.
Obviously, it's too early to project who BYU might target in the transfer portal, but we have some idea of where they stand with 2025 prep recruiting. They are definitely in the mix for the following high school seniors:
#1 AJ Dybantsa, 6-8 SF (one of 7 finalists)
#4 Caleb Wilson, 6-9 PF (NOT one of 12 finalists, but also
not ruled out by Wilson's father)
#35 Xavion Staton, 7-0 C (one of 6 finalists)
#47 JJ Mandaquit, 6-0 PG (one of 9 finalists)
According to
Vanquish the Foe, the SB Nation site for BYU, Dybantsa and Mandaquit are officially visiting Provo the same weekend, and Dybantsa rescheduled his visit to line up with Mandaquit's. They were roommates when representing Team USA in FIBA U17 events, and have remained friends. Notably, BYU is the only finalist they have in common.
ZagsBlog says Staton is visiting BYU on November 2, and in the above link said that "a meeting with BYU has also been set" for Wilson, though the date has not been reported.
There are still a lot of top players who have not named any finalists, so BYU could be in pursuit of many more.
This is going to force the NBA to readjust their rookie pay scale, as that is than 70% of 1st rounders make.
Rookie contracts are tied to the salary cap, so as it goes up, they go up.
Also, I don't think the NBA cares. They know that the goal for players is to make it in the league, the highest level of competition, and that the salaries are generally better in the pros. (Reed Sheppard, the highest drafted college player in 2024, will make just under
$10.1 million as a rookie. Baylor Scheierman, the last pick of the first round, is still getting almost
$2.5 million next season.)
The best college players aren't going to stay in school any longer than they have to, even for fake NIL money. $2 million NIL players like Great Osobor and Coleman Hawkins probably ARE making more at Washington and Kansas State than they would have as second round draft picks, but they are the exception. If anything, the NBA probably prefers them to be more polished when they enter the draft.
