BYU star AJ Dybantsa and family have Jamaica in their hearts

LAS VEGAS – Thanks to her rising star son, AJ Dybantsa’s mother can now use his college basketball games as a distraction from thinking about her hurricane-ravaged Jamaica.

Chelsea Dybantsa was in attendance to see her son score 21 points in his college basketball debut during Brigham Young University’s 71-66 win over Villanova on Monday night. It was an unforgettable moment for AJ Dybantsa’s family, which also included his father and two sisters, to see him live up to all the hype.

But once the buzzer sounded, Chelsea Dybantsa’s mind likely turned back to the devastation and death recently caused by Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica.

“Looking at the videos from different parishes, communities, it’s just devastating right now looking at it. Part of me is happy that AJ’s college basketball season is starting. And the other part of me is thinking about the devastation and the disaster that hit Jamaica,” Chelsea Dybantsa told Andscape on Sunday in a phone interview.

Chelsea Dybantsa and legions of basketball fans will also be distracted for good reason by AJ Dybantsa and one of the best freshman classes in recent years this season.

Dybantsa joins Kansas freshman guard Darryn Peterson as front-runners for the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA draft. Dybantsa, believed to be paid about $7 million from BYU, has Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deals with Nike, Red Bull and Fanatics. He had a Nutricost commercial with former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal that ran during a timeout in the second half against Villanova.

On Monday, Dybantsa scored a team-high 21 points (9-of-18 field goals) while adding nine rebounds and three assists at T-Mobile Arena against the Wildcats. Both head coaches were impressed with Dybantsa in his debut.

“When you’ve got a talented freshman like that who’s the first, second pick in the draft, which he is. … He’s one of the best high school basketball players coming out that I’ve seen in a long time,” Villanova head coach Kevin Willard said. “He has great size. Great length. He’s much tougher for a kid his age. He’s the real deal.”

Said BYU head coach Kevin Young: “Down the stretch, we put the ball in his hands and he made plays. For his first game to be able to have poise to do that, I thought it was impressive. He finally got his butt in there to get some offensive rebounds, too, which I was happy to see.”

In May, Dybantsa was in Kingston, Jamaica, surprising young basketball players with Nike gear and also learning more about his family roots. Just months later, Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica on Oct. 28 as a Category 5 storm. Jamaican authorities said Monday that Hurricane Melissa caused at least 67 deaths and $4 billion in insured losses in the country.

Hugh Grant, president and CEO of Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS), also reportedly said as of Monday afternoon that 50% of customers were still in the dark in the aftermath of the storm. ABC reported that entire neighborhoods were destroyed by the devastating storm.

While BYU’s colors are blue and white, the 19-year-old wore green, black and yellow Nikes in his debut to bring attention to Jamaica during this tough time.

“I thought it was only right to wear this because obviously Jamaica has been hit with those storms,” Dybantsa told Andscape about his shoes. “I’m doing a Go Fund Me to raise money for them. I thought it was only right to bring these out for the first game. I’ll probably never bring these out again.”

Chelsea Dybantsa hails from Chester Castle in Hanover Parish, Jamaica. Chester Castle is about 25 miles west of Montego Bay. A section of the Noel Holmes Hospital, the Hanover Health Department and several government buildings had roof damage in Hanover Parish, according to the Jamaica Observer. Internet and cell phone use has also been a challenge for many Hanover Parish residents who have gone to Montego Bay to get reception, the newspaper reported.

“I was able to see some footage of my community and my grandparents’ home,” Chelsea Dybantsa said. “And the good news is that our house is standing still. However, the majority of their homes in our surrounding areas are just flattened, just nothing but debris. So yeah, it’s tough. It’s tough to watch and witness.

“I spoke with my cousin [on Sunday]; she lives in Kingston. She actually drove down to Hanover. She’s about three hours from Kingston. So, she was able to make it up to where my cousin and my aunt live and brought them some water and some things to hold them over until hopefully within a week or the next two weeks.”

Said AJ Dybantsa: “My mom still has family over there. They’re on the (countryside). I don’t know how bad it’s being impacted over there.”

Chelsea Dybantsa, 53, grew up in Jamaica before moving to Boston to join her mother and other family members in 1995, and has lived in the United States ever since. She last went to Jamaica in 2023 but hasn’t returned to Chester Castle since 2019. She brought her children (Samara, 22; AJ, 19; and Jasmyn, 16) to Jamaica in 2015. Anicet ‘Ace’ Dybantsa Sr., AJ’s father, is from Brazzaville in The Republic of Congo, and he brought his entire family there in 2015.

During the 2024 Nike Hoop Summit, an international All-Star game, AJ Dybantsa played for the World Team against the United States and wore Jamaican and Congolese flags on the front of his jersey. His parents still recall that moment proudly.

“It meant the world to us. He didn’t want to pick sides. … Of course, we were able to get AJ’s nationalization so he can wear the flag and represent Jamaica,” Chelsea Dybantsa said.

Through their parents, AJ Dybantsa and his two sisters have learned the importance of giving back.

In addition to his trip to Jamaica in May, Dybantsa has given shoes to kids in Provo, Utah, and annually gives school supplies to his old elementary school, Mattapan, Mass. While Dybantsa has played for USA Basketball, he also joined forces earlier this year with the Bob & Rita Marley Foundation and the Jamaica Basketball Association to support youth basketball in Jamaica.

“It started for all my kids when they were young,” Anicet Dybantsa said. “AJ was the first to go to the Congo with me when he was 4 years old. And I remember bringing a bunch of pens, pencils, stuff like that, to go donate to the middle school that I attended when I was there. And he came along. He helped me to distribute it and then at the end he asked me, ‘Why do we do this?’ I said, ‘It’s because they don’t have. You’ve got to give to those who don’t have. Someday it will be you giving.’

“Twelve years later, he got his first NIL deal from Nike. He started giving away sneakers and socks, hat, shirts. … It has become second nature for him just to give back.”

Dybantsa’s Foundation Corp, a 501-C3 public charity, is seeking support through a Go Fund Me to raise money for Jamaica’s hurricane relief efforts as announced on his Instagram page. According to the Go Fund Me page, AJ Dybantsa’s Foundation Corp is “mobilizing forces to improve emergency aid, rebuilding assistance and ongoing support to those most affected.” The hope is to reach $100,000 in donations, with more than $25,000 raised as of Monday night.

Dybantsa said his message for Jamaica is “to stay strong, which is what they told me when I went over there.”

“When you do something in Jamaica, you’re loved by the whole country,” he said. “It’s definitely hitting me. They don’t deserve it. Obviously, it’s not their fault. I’m just trying to raise money to help them over there.”

Chelsea Dybantsa proudly raised her children in the Boston suburbs on reggae music and Jamaican food. But in order for AJ Dybantsa to get Jamaican food in Provo, Utah, or Utah at-large, respectfully, he’ll probably have to lean on his mother’s home cooking.

“Whatever I cooked, they ate,” Chelsea Dybantsa said. “I cook stewed chicken and stewed beef, red snapper fish, jerk chicken, rice and peas. The whole caboodle of Jamaican food. I cooked for them and they enjoyed it. Now they prefer to eat Chipotle, [Raising] Cane’s and Chick-Fil-A rather than [home-] cooked food. But yeah, they definitely enjoyed it. I lived the Jamaican lifestyle over here, so the reggae music was constantly playing in our car. They know the artists.

“We’re still looking for Jamaican food here in Utah. I’m telling you, we searched and searched. I finally found someone in Sandy, Utah, which is 45 minutes outside of Provo. A Black girl from Compton cooking soul food. That’s the only food that comes close. It’s not even close. I’ll say there is also Hawaiian there, but it’s not even close to the real thing. But we’re making the best of it.”

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