“When you get transferred, it’s like a breakup. Except in basketball, you can’t choose your new girlfriend”
The transfer of Ayo Dosunmu to the Minnesota Timberwolves Last February was one of the most notable movements of the closing of the transfer window in the NBA. The player, a native of Chicago and educated at the University of Illinois, landed precisely in the Bulls with the #38 pick of the 2021 Draft.
His landing in the league and precisely in the team that he followed since he was little was a complete coincidence of fate, although his arrival in the NBA coincided at a time where in the Bulls There was overpopulation in the outer positions. For Dosunmu It was not a problem, since he did not miss any of the opportunities to be a fixture in the rotation of Billy Donovan.
However, despite extending his contract for the first time in the summer of 2023 with Chicago, nothing could compare to the second extension of his career. After arriving in Minnesota last February, Dosunmu fell on his feet Wolves and convinced from the first day. This summer he signed an extension in 112 million dollars in 5 seasonsjust over 22 ‘kilos’ annually and with a player option in 2030-31.
“It’s crazy, but I actually cried with joy when I signed my extension this summer. When I say that, people probably think I’m talking about my career in the league. I fell way beyond where I thought I was going to go in the draft, going in the second round to the Bulls and all the pressure that comes with being a city kid and all that. Come to a team with a hundred bases and try to get minutes. But really, that’s just basketball, and basketball to me is like a fish in water. It’s simply what I do. I know it will always work. If you just give me 5 minutes, it will be a good 5 minutes. If you only give me 6 shots, 4 of them are going to go in“Dosunmu recounted in The Players’ Tribune.
When you get transferred, it’s like a breakup. Only in basketball, you can’t choose your new girlfriend! You don’t know how it’s going to work. You may be a good fit, or you may not be.
Minnesota Timberwolves player
“I know I came here (to Minnesota) at last year’s trade deadline with a “wait and see” mentality. That’s what the whole league was saying. I’m a basketball fan, so I knew how it worked. When you get transferred, it’s like a breakup. Only in basketball, you can’t choose your new girlfriend! You don’t know how it’s going to work. You may be a good fit, or you may not be.“, said the point guard. “I had spent my entire life in Chicago, in my bubble with my family, from childhood to Illinois and the Bulls. So I felt God telling me, ‘Okay, it’s time to grow up. I’m throwing you into the pool without knowing how to swim for the first time. “You have to adapt or sink.”
After his first months in Minneapolis, Dosunmu recorded 14.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.0 steal of the ball in the 24 games he played in the regular season. However, his role in the Playoffs increased and he became a fundamental piece to eliminate the Denver Nuggets in the 1st round, where he signed a perfect Game 4 with 43 points and 12-12 in field goals taking advantage of knee injury Anthony Edwards.
After being eliminated in the 2nd round at the hands of the San Antonio Spurs by 4-1, Dosunmu He is preparing to carry out his first full season in Minnesota, and for now he is already improving records from previous years. For now, after 9 games and with a 6-3 record, he is already averaging 16.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists by shock.
