Michael Ajayi's incredible journey to Gonzaga: ‘It is something that you would see on like a movie script’

How a massive growth spurt, COVID-19 and help from a few local NBA icons paved the path for the Washington native

James Snook-USA TODAY Sports

Blake Solomon couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw Michael Ajayi walk through the doors of the Kentwood High School gym. 

It had been almost 15 months since Solomon, the head coach of the Kentwood boys basketball team, had seen Ajayi pick up a basketball. The COVID-19 pandemic had essentially shut down boys basketball in Washington for over a year after the 2019-20 season ended in February. Open gyms, practices and any form of team workouts or bonding were prohibited. College coaches weren’t doing a lot of recruiting, outside of maybe Zoom calls and over-the-phone interviews.

Ajayi wasn’t getting any such attention at the time. He stood at 5-foot-10 and weighed maybe 170 pounds as a junior playing for the junior varsity team. Solomon considered putting him on the varsity squad, though a senior got the last spot on the team over Ajayi.

Without high school basketball in the fall and winter of 2020, Ajayi seized any opportunity he had to elevate his game in hopes of playing on the varsity team as a senior. When he wasn’t spending endless hours working on his craft at home on the basketball court his parents built for him, the Kent, Washington, native was traveling with a local AAU team and competing in what few tournaments were being held around the country.

That’s when Solomon started getting phone calls from college coaches.

“I was like, ‘Well, this is kind of a weird phone call because he hasn't even played varsity,’” Solomon said.

It wasn’t until May of 2021 that Solomon realized why recruiters had begun to take an interest in Ajayi. Along with his improvements on the court, Ajayi was no longer 5-foot-10 — he was 6-foot-7.

“When he walked into that gym for that first open gym, I mean he was a completely different kid,” Solomon said. “He looked like a grown man at that point now, and he had grown so much over the year he was like almost unrecognizable.”

Ajayi’s sudden growth spurt came with a price — he had developed Osgood-Schlatter, a disease characterized by a painful bump just below the knees that’s caused by inflammation of the patellar ligament. Commonly found in adolescents and worsened by frequent running and jumping, the condition put limitations on Ajayi’s mobility during his senior year. He’d have to sit out practices the day before a game due to the pain, which was evidenced by his constant limping up and down the court.

Still, Ajayi managed to have a productive season on the varsity team. He averaged 10.7 points and 8.8 rebounds. Unfortunately for him, COVID-19 restrictions prevented most people outside of friends and family from watching his games at Kentwood, on top of the fact that there wasn’t a state tournament because of the pandemic. 

With the little exposure Ajayi had, he received interest from a few community colleges in the area. Pierce Community College was the biggest pursuer.

Ajayi starred at Pierce, as he was named the 2022 Northwest Athletic Conference West Region's Most Valuable Player and the West Region's Freshman of the Year. He averaged 20.4 points and 11.3 rebounds in 23 games and recorded a double-double in all 14 league games. Ajayi was head and shoulders above his competition at the JUCO level, but it wasn’t until he attended a local pro-am tournament that he really started making some noise.

Following his first season at Pierce, Ajayi attended the CrawsOver Pro-Am event hosted by former NBA player and Seattle native, Jamal Crawford. Ajayi’s game caught the attention of a few local icons, including Isiah Thomas. The former University of Washington standout and NBA guard had strong ties with then-Pepperdine head coach Lorenzo Romar, who was Thomas’ former coach at UW. 

And so, after growing nine inches in 15 months and dealing with pain in his knees, only to be overlooked due to limitations on recruiting and lack of varsity experience, Ajayi’s hard work and dedication earned him an opportunity to play Division-I basketball.

“It is something that you would see on like a movie script,” Solomon said of Ajayi’s story.

Ajayi’s lone season in Malibu, California, saw him take home All-WCC first team honors after leading the Waves with 17.2 points and 9.9 rebounds. He shot 47.0% from 3-point range and possessed the length and athleticism to be a solid on-ball defender. Fueled by his competitive motor, Ajayi burst onto the scene as one of the best players in the West Coast Conference almost immediately.

In just his fifth game playing Division-I hoops, Ajayi dropped 31 points and grabbed 12 rebounds against UNLV, which boasted a top-100 defense this past season. He shot 12-of-18 from the field and made a pair of 3-pointers, even recording two steals in the process, though the Waves went on to lose by 14 points. Even so, it was clear they had found a diamond in the rough.

“The shotmaking you get an ability to iso him in the mid-post and at the elbows, helps a lot too,” Solomon said. “But just the fact that he competes so hard and does dirty work stuff. I mean, he's gonna fit in next to whoever he's playing with.”

Ajayi was one of the most sought-after players in the country once he hit the transfer portal this spring. Schools from the Big 12, Big Ten, ACC and SEC contacted Ajayi during his brief time in the portal, though ultimately he decided to take his talents closer to home once he committed to Mark Few and Gonzaga back in March.

It wasn’t long after Ajayi announced he was joining the Zags that he put his name into NBA Draft consideration, which prompted an invite to the draft combine in Chicago this past week. The 6-foot-7 wing showed off his length, versatility and athleticism in both combine scrimmages, including a 14-point, 7-rebound showing on the last day. Whether his performances and measurements lead to him being selected with one of the 58 picks in June's draft, Ajayi seemed more than content with moving on to the NBA or staying in college for his senior season.

“If [NBA coaches and general managers] want me to stay in the draft then, God bless,” Ajayi said in an interview with Andy Katz. “But if they want me to do another year [of college basketball], then I’d be glad to go to Gonzaga with a good team next year. I feel like we’re gonna win a national championship.”

Early expectations are sky-high for the Bulldogs next season. Few returns six of his top seven scorers, including four of five starters, and adds 6-foot-5 grad transfer Khalif Battle from Arkansas and 6-foot-5 defensive specialist Emmanuel Innocenti from Tarleton State. Steele Venters, who missed all of last season with a torn ACL, is set to make his Gonzaga debut along with the incoming transfer portal class.

Should Ajayi withdraw his name from draft consideration, the Zags should hold a firm position in the top 10 entering next fall.

“I know that Gonzaga has their whole core coming back, but I would be very surprised if he doesn't make like an immediate impact,” Solomon said. “His ability to stretch the floor and how hard he works and how versatile defensively he is because of how long he is. I don't see how there's not a way he doesn't come in and immediately impact that roster.”

When comparing Ajayi’s game to former Zags, Solomon likened him to Rui Hachimura in regard to his physicality on defense and tenacity on the boards. 

“He wants to be great,” Solomon said. “He obviously can really shoot it. He rebounds the ball really, really well. He defends well, but all that stuff came from all the hours he put in, which comes back to, it's just his work ethic and his competitiveness is what I feel like stands out with Michael.”