Former Illini Ayo Dosunmu is doing well for the Bulls in the NBA preseason

After missing the Chicago Bulls’ final 2024-25 NBA preseason game due to shoulder soreness, Ayo Dosunmu returned to the starting lineup with a bang on Friday against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

In Chicago’s final preseason game before the official start of the NBA season, Dosunmu led the team. Bulls with 19 points, three assists and three rebounds. The former Illini guard knocked down five 3s, including a buzzer-beating pull-up at the end of the first quarter – which he may or may not have called the bench for:

At Illinois, Dosunmu averaged 20.1 points, 5.3 assists and 6.3 rebounds as a junior and stuffed his personal trophy case full of hardware – including universally recognized first-team All-American honors and the annual Bob Cousy Award awarded to the best point guard in college basketball. So maybe a hasty prayer for a shot off the glass in a preseason game isn’t much of a celebration.

But Friday’s game could be an indicator of broader developments. After a solid first two NBA seasons in Chicago that included an All-Rookie season, Dosunmu made a big jump in his third year – 12.2 points per game and 40.0 percent three-point shooting.

Dosunmu’s size, athleticism and skill were never in question – but his jump shot was at times. We’ve seen a lot of random shooting seasons in the NBA in the past. (Remember the year we were supposed to take Draymond Green seriously as a 3-point threat?) After 2023-24, how could we be sure that Dosunmu had found his stroke?

Well, if this preseason is any indication — and yes, we know: small sample size — Dosunmu’s stroke hasn’t gone unnoticed. In the three games so far, he has averaged 12.0 points with a field goal rate of 54.2 percent – and hit 9 of 15 three-pointers (60.0 percent).

Something may have to give at some point in Chicago, especially after Lonzo Ball returned and scored 10 and 11 points in the Bulls’ last two games in his first appearance since 2021-22 (wow). But with his versatility and – well – his consistent ability to bolster an NBA defense, Dosunmu appears to have his long-term future in the league secured.

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