Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals between the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder is just hours away, and fans are getting excited for the final game of the 2024-25 season. One person, though, offered an interesting Boston Celtics take ahead of the action.
That person would be incoming BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa. The No. 1 prospect in the 2025 class, Dybantsa is widely expected to be one of the top prospects, if not the top prospect, in the 2026 NBA Draft.
While Dybantsa spent his final high school season playing for Utah Prep Academy, he grew up in Brockton, Massachusetts. As a result, Dybantsa is a huge fan of the Celtics, which he has made very clear on several occasions.
One of those occasions has taken place right before Game 7 tips off. When asked by BYU’s official men’s basketball account on Instagram whether he was rooting for the Pacers of the Thunder in Game 7, Dybantsa provided a six-word response that will surely endear him to Celtics Nation.
“Celtics fan, I’m happy for whoever,” Dybantsa simply said in response to the question.
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Back in December, Dybantsa stunned basketball fans by committing to BYU over a handful of other powerhouse Division-I programs. If all goes according to plan, he figures to spend only one year with the Cougars before potentially finding his way to the NBA for the 2026-27 season.
A small forward in size, Dybantsa’s combination of height and ball-handling ability makes him the sort of prospect that teams across the NBA are in love with nowadays. A skilled finisher at the rim who can also knockdown jumpers and create open looks for his teammates, there’s no glaring offensive weakness on paper for Dybantsa.
Chances are the Celtics won’t have the opportunity to draft Dybantsa if he declares for the 2026 draft, but his affinity for Boston has made him just as popular as Cooper Flagg, a Maine native who appears set to be selected No. 1 overall by the Dallas Mavericks in the 2025 NBA Draft.
First, the 2025 Finals need to come to a conclusion. Game 7 is set to tip off on Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET, with the winner being crowned the champion of the season.
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