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Top 5 Chicago, Illinois basketball recruits from the 2010s

By Rees Woodcock

02 APR 2012: Head coach John Calipari and forward Anthony Davis (23) from the University of Kentucky celebrate following the Championship Game of the 2012 NCAA Photos via Getty Images Men's Division I Basketball Championship Final Four held at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome hosted by Tulane University in New Orleans, LA. Kentucky defeated Kansas 67-59 to claim the championship title. Ryan McKee/ NCAA Photos via Getty Images.
02 APR 2012: Head coach John Calipari and forward Anthony Davis (23) from the University of Kentucky celebrate following the Championship Game of the 2012 NCAA Photos via Getty Images Men's Division I Basketball Championship Final Four held at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome hosted by Tulane University in New Orleans, LA. Kentucky defeated Kansas 67-59 to claim the championship title. Ryan McKee/ NCAA Photos via Getty Images. /
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CHAMPAIGN, IL – JANUARY 11: Illinois guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) shoots a free throw during a college basketball game between the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and Illinois Fighting Illini on January 11, 2020 at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill (Photo by James Black/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
CHAMPAIGN, IL – JANUARY 11: Illinois guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) shoots a free throw during a college basketball game between the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and Illinois Fighting Illini on January 11, 2020 at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill (Photo by James Black/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

No. 4 Ayo Dosunmu

There is probably only one “controversial” player on this top five list. But when you look at the numbers and what he is doing on the basketball court, Ayo Dosunmu has earned a place on here.

Ayo was one of those highly-touted recruits I was mentioning earlier. He was sensational at the high school ranks with Morgan Park. Coming out of high school, he was rated as a four-star recruit who was the No. 32 player in the class of 2018 and the No. 3 combo-guard in the nation. He was also the best player in the entire state of Illinois.

Year one was a big adjustment period for the Illinois basketball team. There had been a lot of change over the past couple of years. The team was fairly young too, with two of their top three leading scorers being freshmen and the other was a sophomore.

Despite the team struggles, Ayo managed to shine bright. He finished his freshman season averaging 13.8 points, 4 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. Those numbers were sensational and earned him a spot on the all-freshman team in the Big Ten.

Ayo is now in his sophomore season with the Illini and things are going much better for him and the team. Illinois is off to a 12-5 start and is ranked for the first time since December 2014. This might have something to do with Ayo putting up 15.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. Expect the Illini to go dancing this season.

The college career of Ayo isn’t complete, but I believe he will head to the professional ranks after this season. He has averaged 14.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game through about a season and a half of basketball. Even without his sophomore season finished, I believe Ayo is up there in the top five Chicago, Illinois recruits from the 2010s.

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