Basketball
Dunk the Sun: AJ Dybantsa rises as basketball’s next star
In a stunning set of action photos, the rising son of basketball dunks, shoots and palms the brightest object in our solar system.
As the late afternoon light dipped toward the Pacific, AJ Dybantsa descended upon the court at Angels Gate Park as it transformed into something almost otherworldly. The sky melted into layers of gold, orange, and soft pink, turning the sun into the brightest, most unforgiving prop imaginable.
Every second mattered. Every inch mattered more.
Photographer Dustin Snipes paced the baseline with quiet intensity, camera ready, tracking the sun’s descent as carefully as any coach diagramming a final play. There was no reset button here — no do-overs once the sun slipped below the horizon. Each sequence demanded near-perfect synchronization between photographer and athlete.
“A shoot like this is all about alignment — not just visually, but rhythmically,” said Snipes. “You’re working with a moving subject that you can’t control, so everything — the jump, the hand placement, the shutter — has to come together at exactly the right moment. When it does, you get something you can’t fake.”
Perfect timing creates the illusion of AJ Dybantsa shooting the sun
© Dustin Snipes
“With the photographer, he’s the point guard delivering the assist and I have to be fully locked in to finalize the play,” said Dybantsa.
And like any great finisher, Dybantsa didn’t just meet the moment - he elevated it. He attacked each frame like it was a possession that mattered.
Whether rising for a one-handed dunk, extending into a silky jumper, or palming the glowing sphere at full reach, he moved with a rare blend of power and control. His 6-foot-9 frame carved a clean silhouette against the sky, creating the illusion that he wasn’t just playing with the sun - he was commanding it.
“You’ve got to visualize it,” Dybantsa said, resetting for another take.
AJ Dybantsa shows off the full wingspan as he palms the sun and basketball
© Dustin Snipes
There’s nothing actually in your hand, so it’s all about trust — trusting where it is, trusting your timing, trusting the shot.
That trust - and that imagination —- is part of what has made Dybantsa the consensus No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. Long before this shoot in San Pedro, his game had already captured national attention. From Boston gyms to BYU arenas, his combination of size, skill, and feel has separated him as the next centerpiece of the league.
But on this day, it wasn’t about projections or numbers.
It was about symbolism.
The sun - constant, central, impossible to ignore - became a visual metaphor for what Dybantsa represents at this moment in basketball. A gravitational force. A focal point. The next figure everything else begins to orbit.
And as the light continued to fade, urgency set in. The team moved quickly through final setups — one more dunk, one more jumper, one more perfectly timed leap. Snipes adjusted angles by inches. Dybantsa fine-tuned his approach steps. Both locked into the same goal: capturing something that felt bigger than a photo.
Then, in the final moments before sunset, everything aligned.
Dybantsa rose toward the rim, arm fully extended, fingers precisely meeting the descending edge of the sun. For a split second, time seemed to pause — the horizon, the athlete, and the lens all perfectly in sync.
Click.
The shot was captured.
A decade after Anthony Davis first turned this concept into an iconic image at the same park, AJ Dybantsa didn’t just recreate the moment — he redefined it. Bigger, sharper, more controlled. A new era framed in a single instant.
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As the sun disappeared and the court fell into shadow, Dybantsa walked off with the same quiet confidence he carried into the shoot.
The sun may set. But his rise is just getting started.
Who is AJ Dybantsa?