SUPERSTAR REALITY! AJ Dybantsa Can SURPASS ALL-Star FLOOR and be HOW GREAT? Is he Jayson Tatum?

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4.7 • 1.6K Ratings

🗓️ 27 April 2026

⏱️ 34 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Utah Jazz weigh AJ Dybantsa's superstar potential: Can his game rise from NBA All-Star to perennial All-NBA and franchise cornerstone? High scoring, elite athleticism, and question marks around his three-point shot dominate the draft debate. Is AJ destined to be just another Brandon Ingram or Paolo Banchero—talented, but not a winner—or could he evolve into the next Jason Tatum or even surpass him? Leif Thulin provides sharp comparisons with DeMar DeRozan, Jalen Brown, and other NBA standouts, dissecting shot profiles, advanced metrics, and what separates “good” from “great” in today’s league. Key insights include Dybantsa's shot diet, playmaking, and defensive outlook, plus what the Jazz must demand from a top pick in a loaded draft class. The stakes are high: Will Utah finally land a true game-changer and end their title drought?

Transcript

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0:00.0	AJ's an all-star in the NBA as a floor.
0:04.6	But how great?
0:05.5	Not good, but great, can he be?
0:07.8	We'll explore that next on Locked On Jazz.
0:15.3	You are Locked On Jazz, your daily podcast on the Utah Jazz.
0:19.9	Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day.
0:27.1	What's up, Jazz Nation?
0:28.4	Welcome into Locked on Jazz.
0:29.8	My name's Lee, Tulene, excited to fill in for David Locke on Lock on Jazz and talk about
0:34.1	the jazz and the draft.
0:35.9	Today, I'll break down the different levels and pathways ascending from All-Star
0:40.9	to first-team All-MBA and perennial first-team all-MBA guy that I think A.J. DeBanza has
0:47.2	as distinguished possibilities.
0:50.1	And I'll give you comparable players from each tier that breaks down what AJ is really good at and where he can improve to reach those levels.
0:58.7	So let's dive right in.
1:00.9	First things at first, the everydayers know this.
1:03.4	David Locke mentioned AJ's 33rd percentile catch and shoot numbers and how he shoots just 34% from three.
1:09.9	And he mentioned all the players who have shot poorly, but been good, but not great.
1:15.2	And that's not good enough for the jazz.
1:17.2	Because what I plan to delineate is what AJ can do to mirror the great ones and not the
1:22.7	ones that were good, but kind of stuck in purgatory of are they good enough to lead a team
1:26.4	versus are they great enough to lead a team versus are they
	...

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