The San Antonio Spurs are doing very well in the Western Conference right now. The Oklahoma City Thunder are the only team with a better record than Victor Wembanyama and Co., who are seeded second with a record of 53-18. Their success comes from their incredible depth, which could lead to a deep playoff run. They are ready to improve their team this summer, even if they don’t win it all this year.

What do we mean by that? Well, it comes from the BYU Cougars star and possible No. 1 pick this summer, AJ Dybantsa’s comments from the past few days. Even though his college career didn’t end the way he wanted it to—his team lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament—many people still think he will be one of the best players from this draft class.

This would put the 19-year-old in a great position to join one of the many tanking teams. But it looks like he has other interests. When Stephen A. Smith asked the Cougars star on ESPN’s First Take, “Is there a system that exists out there that you think is tailor-made for you?” “Are you in the NBA?” He said, “Spurs and Magic,” without wasting a single breath.

“Why those two teams?” Smith followed. “See, look, you watched the film. How do you think me and Wemby would play?” Dybantsa replied, leaving the popular analyst speechless. It goes without saying that AJ Dybantsa’s reply will get the San Antonio Spurs supporters excited. However, despite them owning an unprotected first-round pick via the Atlanta Hawks, landing the 19-year-old might not be easy.

That’s because Atlanta is currently 6th in the East with a 39-32 record, and if they do end up finishing that high up, they’ll be out of the lottery. And it’s unrealistic to think that so many teams would pass up on AJ Dybantsa. Nonetheless, even though the hopes of seeing the 19-year-old team up with Victor Wembanyama might be slim, they are not zero. Especially with the war chest of picks the Spurs possess.

So, even though they might not be able to land him with their first rounder, they can trade their way up in the table. But will the historic franchise be willing to take that risk? Perhaps. If they do, it would certainly bolster their ranks for the foreseeable future. Even more so, with Stephen A. Smith backing AJ Dybantsa up to be this summer’s No. 1 pick.

Stephen A. Smith believes AJ Dybantsa deserves to be the No. 1 pick

While there seems to be a lot of debate on who will be the No. 1 pick in this summer’s draft– with fans and analysts divided amongst the talented pool of players– Stephen A. Smith remains firm on his stance. On his show recently, the First Take host revealed that even though he doesn’t consider anyone locked in for the top overall spot, if it were up to him, he’d happily select the Cougars star.

“Well, let me say this. Um, he’s not a lock. But I think he should be [No. 1] because, let me tell you something, I can’t teach 6’8, 6’9″ with that kind of athleticism, with that wingspan, with that ball handling ability, that scoring ability. I can’t teach that,” he said.

“That’s just me … To me, nobody’s a lock,” Smith further emphasized. “I get it because the talent is too steep, and you never know what the team’s needs are, etc. But I would tell you this, Stephen A. Smith would draft AJ Dybantsa number one overall.”

Well, it isn’t much of a surprise given that despite his team having a mediocre season at best, invidual Dybantsa has been terrific. While BYU bowed out to Texas, the 19-year-old had a solid game, finishing with a double-double of 35 points and 10 rebounds. But that’s not all, apart from that, he also averaged 25.3 points while shooting 51.3 percent from the field in the regular season.

While that alone speaks volumes about his potential, he did so on an injury-riddled Cougars team that possesses way less depth than powers such as Duke or Arizona. That said, it will be interesting to see how the NBA teams view AJ Dybantsa’s lone college season. Especially the Spurs, who could trade their way up to help him realize his dream of playing alongside Victor Wembanyama.