An unexpected individual just made his way to watch a recent regular-season game of BYU Cougars star AJ Dybantsa, which led to the Cougars’ social media account making a clarification about the visit.
On Saturday, Feb. 14, Dybantsa and the rest of coach Kevin Young’s 2025-26 Cougars squad went up against coach Tad Boyle’s Colorado Buffaloes in the former’s home arena, the Marriott Center in Provo, Utah.
In a post uploaded by @CBBonFOX, Utah Jazz CEO of basketball operations and alternate governor Danny Ainge was captured in attendance for the Cougars-Buffaloes matchup.
The caption also mentioned that Ainge was in attendance to watch Dybantsa play, given that he has been one of the most outstanding freshmen in the 2025-26 college basketball campaign thus far.
Dybantsa is likely a one-and-done talent for the BYU program and is a potential No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft later this year. The Jazz have a top 8-protected first round pick, which means the Utah-based franchise gets to keep their selection if it falls into the top 8 of the draft order.
However, the official Cougars social media page has cleared the air as to what exactly Ainge is doing in the team’s home court watching a regular season game. Besides presumably taking a look at Dybantsa’s game, the post pointed out that Ainge is actually a former player of the BYU program. From 1977 to 1981, Ainge suited up for the Cougars’ men’s basketball team.
Ainge did this while he was simultaneously playing amateur baseball for the Toronto Blue Jays. The 66-year-old then went on to play for 14 years in the NBA from 1981 to 1995, before becoming a head coach and team executive in the league.
The BYU Cougars Beat The Colorado Buffaloes In Overtime
Much to the delight of Ainge and the rest of the BYU Cougars faithful, AJ Dybantsa and Co. defeated the Colorado Buffaloes by four points, 90-86. The game went into overtime where the Cougars outscored Colorado, 12-8.
Dybantsa finished with 20 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 assists in 43 minutes, but he also shot just 6-of-20 from the field and also had 7 turnovers. With Richie Saunders leaving the game early due to a lower leg injury, sophomore guard Robert Wright III stepped up for the Cougs as he had a game-high 39 points on 12-of-16 shooting.
BYU now holds an overall record of 19-6 (7-5 Big 12) heading into their next game against the Arizona Wildcats on Wednesday, Feb. 18.
