Gonzaga’s Joel Ayayi is ‘very happy’ playing overseas in France

'I’ve been able to see my family, play with my little brother, go see some of my sister’s games. It’s been very fun,' Ayayi said.

Dec 5, 2021; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Washington Wizards forward Corey Kispert (24) talks with Washington Wizards guard Joel Ayayi (17) during the warmup against the Toronto Raptors at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports / Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports

Joel Ayayi’s basketball career has come full circle. After returning to his home France last year from a short NBA stint, the former Gonzaga Bulldogs standout guard is set up for a prolonged career overseas.

Ayayi, 24, signed a one-year deal with JL Bourg Basket, a professional team in Bourg-en-Bresse, France, that competes in the LNB Elite League. The 6-foot-4 guard joins the club following one season with Nanterre 92 in the Pro A league, in which he averaged 8.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists across 34 games.

While the transition takes him slightly further from his hometown Bordeaux (Bourg-en-Bresse is 40 kilometers further from Bordeaux than Nanterre), Ayayi finds himself more than content with his life back in France, where he plays professionally on the same team as his brother Gerald.

“It was a culture change for me after six years in the U.S.,” Ayayi said. “But I’ve been able to see my family, play with my little brother, go see some of my sister’s [Valeriane] games. It’s been very fun.”

Prior to signing with Nanterre last year, Ayayi spent two years bouncing around on two-way contracts in the NBA. His most recent stint was in the 2023 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, where he suited up in three games for the Memphis Grizzlies. That came after he spent much of the 2022-23 campaign with the Osceola (then Lakeland) Magic, the Orlando Magic’s G League affiliate team.

Ayayi’s first NBA experience will be one he’ll never forget. After going undrafted in the 2021 NBA Draft, he signed a two-way deal to join the Washington Wizards, reuniting him with former Gonzaga teammates Corey Kispert and Rui Hachimura.

“It’s like you leave Gonzaga but you don’t really leave it because your best friends are here and you’re able to do everything together again as a pro,” Ayayi said. “Corey was my roommate [at Gonzaga], we spent all four years together and to be in our first professional experience together was crazy. To be on flights next to each other, it was very fun.”

Ayayi caught up with Hachimura, whom he called “a big brother” of his, when their careers crossed paths again with the Los Angeles Lakers. 

Ayayi shared more about his time at Gonzaga, including what it was like going from a redshirt player to playing in the national championship game as a senior, and much more in a new episode of Forever Zags.

WATCH THE FULL EPISODE BELOW:

Produced by Thomas Gallagher.

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