AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson offer glimpses of NBA’s bright future at Summer League tournament

LAS VEGAS — When I walked into the Thomas & Mack Center on Thursday for the opening of the NBA Summer League, the first thing I noticed was that it was decorated in a way that was meant to connect the future of the game with its current crop of stars next week – and here at this multi-purpose arena that usually serves as the home of Josh Pastner’s UNLV Runnin’s Rebels.

THE STARS OF TOMORROW PLAY HERE

Those are four big sign words that are impossible to miss when you enter. On the left is a photo of AJ Dybantsa, the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. On the right is Jalen Brunson, MVP of the 2026 NBA Finals (still King of New York). To the left is another show — featuring Darryn Peterson, the No. 2 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, and Victor Wembanyama, a 22-year-old phenom who looks set to one day be recognized as the best basketball player in the world, if he isn’t already.

So, yes, the stage was set.

Why the NBA can’t figure out a way to get the right caps for players in each draft, or how they can suddenly flip the potential salary cap, I’ll never understand. But, with credit where credit is due, the league has earned the right to Summer League. The bigger picture, the less important; I think most of us would agree with that. But every year feels as a big deal — and the biggest deal of all, Thursday, was the first in what should be a series of matchups between Dybantsa and Peterson, the top two picks in last month’s draft.

The stars were out.

If you happen to have a guarantee that can reach the bottom, there were familiar faces everywhere before and after the announcement. Jalen Williams and Jaren Jackson Jr. Trace Young in the corner. Anthony Davis, DeAndre Ayton and Cooper Flagg were all in the building. Those last three were No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, 2018 NBA Draft and 2025 NBA Draft.

Is the popularity of Thomas & Mack the same as the start of Zion Williamson’s Summer League? Or at Wemby? Honestly, probably not. But after Dybantsa scored 11 points in the first quarter highlighted by an in-traffic dunk, and after Peterson buried an off-balance 3 in the corner in the opening period, first-ballot Naismith Memorial Hall of Famer Paul Pierce, who is also in the first round, was laughing with some friends. He simply said, with a slow and gentle giggle, “I’ve seen all I need to see.”

I think that goes for all of us.

To be clear, neither Dybantsa nor Peterson were perfect or the best versions of themselves. Dybantsa missed all five he took. Peterson answered it eight times. Both had better games.

However, you can see it.

Paul Pierce saw it. Everyone saw it.

It’s not hard to see.

After watching Peterson soar in last week’s Salt Lake Summer League that some wondered if the Wizards made a mistake by transferring one talent from Kansas, Dybantsa admitted he was motivated Thursday to perform as the No. 1 player in the draft, given that’s where he was drafted. For the most part, he did. Again, the highlight was the first quarter of traffic.

“I turned the corner (and) the only way I could score was not easy,” said Dybantsa. “I got hit twice. So I had to go for it.”

He punched it.

Dybantsa finished with 27 points, tying Blake Griffin for the most points scored in a Las Vegas Summer League opener by a former No. 1 overall pick. Peterson scored 24. When it was all over, and while the building was still coming out, they met the media and drifted into the tunnel in different directions.

One of them was on the mark next to Jalen Brunson. Another is shown near Wemby.

Jobs obviously can come in a variety of ways — just look at Zion Williamson and Ja Morant, the first two picks in the 2019 NBA Draft, who both showed flashes, but neither met initial expectations. In other words, as always, we will see Dybantsa and Peterson. But what I watched in college basketball last season, and again Thursday, were two freshmen who looked the part.