Ayo Dosunmu will once again play a key role with the Bulls in his second season

CHICAGO — Just a year ago, he was a second-round rookie pick looking to find his place on his hometown team. Now, in 2022, Ayo Dosunmu has a chance to make a big impact for a second straight season and maybe be an early starter.

With point guard Lonzo Ball out indefinitely due to a second knee surgery this year, the former Morgan Park High School and Illinois star is in a contest to start at that spot this preseason.

He had the opportunity to do so on Tuesday when he cracked the starting XI against the Pelicans at the opening of the exhibition at the United Center. In 23 minutes, he was off the field with ten points, three assists and two rebounds in the four-point loss to New Orleans 3-for-5.

Whether he stays at that spot once the season begins remains to be seen, with no statements from Billy Donovan ahead of the team’s regular season opener on Oct. 19 against the Heat in Miami. The sophomore guard will compete with Goran Dragic and rookie Dalen Terry for playing time at this point for the rest of the preseason.

But certainly, starting against the Pelicans signals that Dosunmu will play another key role in the team, just as he did in his rookie year.

Beset by injuries all season, particularly those that cost Ball in the second half of the season, Dosunmu started 40 of his 77 games he played in the 2022-2023 season. He averaged 8.8 points, 3.3 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game and played a big part in the Bulls’ return to the playoffs.

Dosunmu didn’t have much time in the first four playoff games against the Bucks but was able to start in Game 5 as the Bulls’ season ended in a loss in Milwaukee.

As the 2022-2023 season begins, where the team will be counting on him again, whether as a starter or a bencher, Dosunmu has some things he wants to improve to make him even better in his second season.

“The endurance part. I can just have my stamina throughout the season and then just be a reliable playmaker at any time,” Dosunmu said on September 28. “There’s going to be a lot of times where teams are going to bet on Zach (LaVine), DeMar (DeRozan), Vooch (Nikola Vucevic), just take my experience from last year and grow as a reliable playmaker out there.”

That will be important for the guard who has found his place on these bulls’ team.