After he missed the first four games of the 2026-27 NBA season due to an ankle injury, the Washington Wizards finally got to see prized rookie AJ Dybantsa in action as he made his debut against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday. It was a strong showing for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, however, his father had one major request for his son regarding his on-court play, as per longtime NBA insider Chris Haynes.

“He gotta learn how to rebound,” Dybantsa’s dad said via Haynes.

While AJ Dybantsa was phenomenal in his Wizards debut, the rookie forward finished with only two rebounds. The rest of his stat line stood out, however. He had 19 points in his first official NBA game, while shooting 8-of-12 from the field, 1-of-3 from the 3-point line and 2-of-2 from the free-throw line.

In college during his lone season at BYU, Dybantsa was a decent enough rebounder, grabbing 6.8 boards across 35 games. During NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, he was at 7.0 rebounds in two games played. For a talented player with the size that he has, however, getting closer to double digit rebounds is not that much of an ask.

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Dybantsa also had a solid preseason for the Wizards stat-wise, appearing in four games at a little over 21 minutes per game. He averaged 12.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.5 steals with splits of 43.9 percent shooting from the field, 18.2 percent shooting from the field and 61.9 percent shooting from the free-throw line.

The Wizards have begun the season at 2-3, and have lost two consecutive games now.