Ayo Dosunmu is one of the most beloved basketball players in recent Illinois Fighting Illini basketball history. A blur with the ball on his hands and streaking toward the basket on fast break opportunities, Dosunmu gave Illinois fans a template for how the point guard position could be played. 

Dosunmu played as a freshman and stayed until the 2020-21 campaign, averaging 16.7 points per game during his time on campus, but his career almost came to an abrupt end after his sophomore season, which he detailed in a recent interview. 

Dosunmu said he was planning to leave Champaign after his second season but then COVID hit, which gave him time to think about his next move. 

"I'm not going to lie...Without COVID, I pretty much would've left after my second year," Dosunmu said to Carson Gourdie of FOX Illinois. 

"COVID hit, and it was a decision I had to make. My mom and dad told me, like, financially, 'We don't need you to make a decision financially for the family, like we're good. We're not rich, we're not poor, we're in a pretty good spot. 

Dosunmu talked to his family during COVID and told them he was going to come back. The Illini's national title hopes were fresh on his mind. 

"I think from the time that I came back on campus, we all had a common goal and that was to win the national championship, and we had an opportunity to do so," Dosunmu said about his coaches and teammates that year. 

The Illini secured the Big Ten's number one seed that season and won the Big Ten Tournament title. Dosunmu was drafted by the hometown Chicago Bulls in the second round, giving him an opportunity to continue to endear himself to Illinois area fans. 

Dosunmu now has a chance to bring an NBA championship home to the Land of 10,000 Lakes as he signed a five-year, $112 million deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves in July. 

He will team up with former Chicago Bulls trade target Jonathan Kuminga, Anthony Edwards, Rudy Gobert, Jaden McDaniels and the rest of the Timberwolves in search of the franchise's first ever NBA title. 

Dosunmu's Illini career will not soon be forgotten. He provided a link between the Dee Brown-Luther Head-Roger Powell years and the next generation and helped Illinois stay relevant on the national map, leading up to this year's NCAA title contending team in Champaign.

If the Fighting Illini bring home the NCAA basketball championship this year, Dosunmu and his former Illini teammates deserve more than a salute. They helped pave the way for what appears to be a special team in Champaign this season.