Ayo Dosunmu gets ‘great opportunity’ in joining Timberwolves after trade from Bulls

Ayo Dosunmu said God had a plan for him. And it wasn’t to stay in Chicago.

Dosunmu was traded to the Timberwolves by the Chicago Bulls on Thursday, Feb. 5. The Bulls were in Toronto when coach Billy Donovan asked Dosunmu if he would be playing against the Raptors that night. Minutes later, Dosunmu’s phone was blowing up with calls about the trade. He found out he wouldn’t be playing with the Bulls anytime soon.

“This is a great opportunity for me. I’m excited to be here with the Timberwolves playoff team,” the 26-year-old guard said Friday, Feb. 6, at Target Center. “[There are a] lot of great guys on the team, great coaching staff, great management. I’m just excited to help get over that hump, whatever it takes to help win.”

Ahead of the trade deadline, the Wolves got Dosunmu and forward Julian Phillips by sending Rob Dillingham, Leonard Miller and four second-round picks to the Bulls.

Dosunmu’s entire career had been in Illinois: Morgan Park High School in Chicago; the University of Illinois, where he won the Cousy Award as the nation’s top point guard; and then the Bulls, who drafted him in the second round (38th overall) in 2021.

The sudden news came with a full court of emotions, he said, forcing him to embrace the feelings and lean into the opportunity to join a winning team.

The Bulls are 11th in the Eastern Conference, just outside the final play-in spot. Dosunmu’s new team sits sixth in the Western Conference after consecutive runs to the conference finals.

Tim Connelly, Wolves president of basketball operations, and coach Chris Finch pointed to Dosunmu’s two-way abilities.

“​​The fact that he does it at both ends is invaluable,” Finch said. “You don’t have to try to think who you put him out there on the floor with.”

When asked if Dosunmu will be part of the eight-man rotation, Finch jokingly said: “I think if I didn’t play him as one of the eight, I’d probably get fired. I like my job.”

The 6-foot-4 Dosunmu is averaging a career-high 15.0 points and shooting 45% from beyond the arc while playing 26.4 minutes per game.

“We have a real puncher’s chance to win a championship. We’re looking for certain players, versatility, guys who play both ends,” Connelly said. “Ayo was having a career year. I’m very familiar with Ayo and what he brings, not just on the court, but in the locker room.”

Connelly said Dosunmu is exactly the kind of player the organization was looking for, adding that he is “certainly hopeful it’s a long-term match. He wasn’t just identified for the next 30-plus games, he’s identified because we think it’s a guy that could be a huge part of our core.”

And don’t overlook Phillips, Finch said. The 22-year-old forward was in his third season with Chicago, playing 11.6 minutes per game.

“We really don’t have a guy on our roster like him,” Finch said, later comparing the 6-6 Phillips to starting forward Jaden McDaniels. “[Phillips] really fits a longer, bigger wing, something the league is craving.”

Phillips believes these skills will help him mesh well with the team: “Being able to press the ball on defense, bringing my versatility on both ends and just doing things the right way,” he said.

Phillips almost joined the Wolves to start his career, according to Connelly, who said the team followed him closely approaching the 2023 draft. Phillips went 35th overall out of Tennessee to the Boston Celtics, who traded him to the Bulls that same night.

Dosunmu, who said he frequently journals, hopes to be part of another long Wolves playoff run.