For three straight matchups, Darryn Peterson had AJ Dybantsa’s number. High school. College. Every time. Then Thursday night in Las Vegas, Dybantsa finally flipped the script.
Washington’s new No. 1 overall pick dropped 27 points on the Jazz in a 92-88 Summer League win, outdueling Peterson, who went No. 2 to Utah just weeks ago. Dybantsa shot 7-for-18 from the floor and missed all five of his threes, but he lived at the rim, drew fouls, and grabbed seven boards. Peterson finished with 24 points on 6-for-18 shooting, turned it over eight times, and never really got comfortable.
“Every time I play against him, it’s a battle,” Dybantsa said afterward. “He beat me three times previously. This is my first win. I’m just glad to come out on top.”
The history between these two runs deep. Back in December 2024, Peterson put up 32 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists for Prolific Prep in a 76-70 win over Dybantsa’s Utah Prep squad. Two months later, Peterson hit a game-winning three and scored 58 points in an 88-86 win. Then at Kansas this January, Peterson dropped 18 points in 20 minutes while Dybantsa managed 17 in 34 minutes during a Jayhawks win over BYU.
So yeah, this one mattered.
Neither guy shot well Thursday. But Dybantsa controlled the parts of the game that don’t always show up in a box score. He took care of the ball. He attacked the rim with the kind of intent that makes you forget he hadn’t played a competitive game since BYU lost to Texas in the NCAA Tournament back in March. Peterson, meanwhile, spent most of the night fighting through pressure from Washington’s Jamir Watkins, who signed another two-way deal this month and looked like a pest out there.
Dybantsa sat the final two minutes with leg soreness but brushed it off afterward. “I’ll be back,” he said. At 6-foot-9 and 217 pounds, he already looks like the kind of scorer who can manufacture points even on an off night. The jumper needs work — he knows that — but the rim pressure is real.
Tre Johnson, the No. 6 pick from 2025, also showed out for Washington with 26 points on 11-for-20 shooting. He scored off the dribble, hit contested layups, and generally looked like a guy who could thrive as a sixth man once the real games start. The Wizards have Trae Young, Anthony Davis, and Alex Sarr eating up minutes in the regular rotation, so Johnson’s volume will drop. But the skill set is there.
The Wizards face the Kings on Sunday. After that, the Bulls, the Clippers, and then either a playoff or consolation game depending on how the rest of Summer League shakes out.
One win doesn’t erase a 0-3 head-to-head record. But for one night in Vegas, Dybantsa got the one that counted.
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