From Morgan Park to the University of Illinois to the Chicago Bulls, Ayo Dosunmu’s story has quickly become the kind that hoopers can only dream of.
In his rookie season of NBA action, Dosunmu will receive his first taste of the playoffs later this week. The Bulls will tip-off against the Bucks on Sunday in Milwaukee, and Dosunmu projects to play quite the vital role. He’s started 40 games this season in place of the injured Lonzo Ball, and he’s used almost every minute to show the NBA he should have never fallen to No. 38 in the 2021 draft.
The Bulls documented this feel-good rise in a new mini-documentary called “Hometown: Ayo Dosunmu.” Members of Dosunmu’s family and Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood talk about the first-year guard’s unlikely story. Dosunmu also touches on what it means to play for the city that raised him, saying he hopes to have the impact of a similar Chicago legend.
“Derrick Rose was here, all the guards looked up to him because he was one of the first really in the city, like South Side. So like you see Derrick Rose do it, you be like, if he can do it, he’s from the city, why can’t I do it?”
Hearing Dosunmu utter an eerily similar “why can’t I” to the one we heard from Rose back in 2010 gave me chills.
Easily the most gripping part of the doc, though, is the story of Dosunmu’s late friend Darius Brown. Those who have followed Dosunmu’s career might know the meaning behind his “Jet Life” phrase and hand signal. But, whether you’ve heard it before or not, I highly recommend watching the full story below.
Check it out: