Once an athlete leaves their collegiate program, there are no requirements for them to ever return to campus, especially when it's a basketball player who may have spent just one season with a team.
However, Illinois head coach Brad Underwood and the Fighting Illini repeatedly find former stars returning to Champaign to work out in the college facilities that they used to call home.
Most recently, former Illinois Fighting Illini guard Ayo Dosunmu returned to campus to visit his old stomping grounds and get a few reps in at the weight room.
There's a reason they come back to the Orange and Blue. pic.twitter.com/UgSF7ZmhuC
— Illinois Men's Basketball (@IlliniMBB) August 20, 2025
Adam Fletcher, who is the Illinois men's basketball Strength & Conditioning Coach, led Dosunmu through a handful of workouts earlier in the week. Fletcher, who is about to enter his 10th season with the program, was in the same role when Dosunmu was on the Fighting Illini's roster.
Former Illini Ayo Dosunmu training in Champaign with Adam Fletcher. Always nice to see alums come back pic.twitter.com/TpIYXDwePS
— Armchair Illinois (@ArmchairIllini) August 20, 2025
Dosunmu played for Illinois from 2018 through 2021 before moving on to become a second-round pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. He was a consensus All-American as well as a two-time All-Big 10 athlete. On January 6, 2022, Dosunmu's jersey No. 11 was honored by the Illini and hung from the rafters in State Farm Center.
Throughout his three-year tenure at Illinois, he earned 1,504 points, 435 rebounds, 351 assists, 97 steals, and 20 blocks, starting in 87 of the 90 games he played in for the Fighting Illini.
Since entering the league, Dosunmu was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team in 2022 and has only played for the Chicago Bulls, the team that drafted him in 2021.
Over the last four seasons in the NBA, the former Illini has amassed 2,856 points, 912 assists, 811 rebounds, 233 steals, and 109 blocks.
Dosunmu and the Bulls will tip off their upcoming season against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Oct. 7, at 7 p.m. CT. The matchup will be aired on Peacock.