Joël Ayayi

Joël Ayayi (born 5 March 2000) is a French professional basketball player for Nanterre 92 of the LNB Pro A. He played college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs.

Joël Ayayi
No. 11 – Nanterre 92
PositionShooting guard
LeagueLNB Pro A
Personal information
Born (2000-03-05) 5 March 2000
Bordeaux, France
NationalityFrench
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight180 lb (82 kg)
Career information
High schoolINSEP
(Paris, France)
CollegeGonzaga (2018–2021)
NBA draft2021: undrafted
Playing career2021–present
Career history
2021–2022Washington Wizards
2021–2022→Capital City Go-Go
2022–2023Lakeland Magic
2023–presentNanterre 92
Career highlights and awards
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  France
FIBA Under-19 World Cup
Bronze medal – third place2019 GreeceTeam
FIBA U18 European Championship
Bronze medal – third place2018 LatviaTeam

Early life and career

Ayayi was born and raised in Bordeaux, France. Growing up, he idolized National Basketball Association (NBA) player and Bordeaux native Boris Diaw.[1] Ayayi attended INSEP, a sports institute in Paris, and played for affiliated club Centre Fédéral.[2]

Recruiting

He was considered a four-star recruit by Rivals and received NCAA Division I offers from Baylor, Georgia Tech, and Gonzaga.[3] On 27 April 2017, Ayayi committed to play college basketball for Gonzaga.[4]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Joël Ayayi
SG		 Bordeaux, France INSEP (FR) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Apr 28, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved 20 May 2017.

Source: Rivals, Scout, ESPN

College career

Ayayi joined the Gonzaga basketball team at age 17 and redshirted his first season to train with the team.[5] In his redshirt freshman season, he averaged 5.6 minutes per game through 23 contests.[6] On 27 November 2019, early in his sophomore season, Ayayi posted 21 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in a win over Southern Miss.[7] He had 20 points in a 94–50 win over San Diego on 9 January 2020.[8] At the conclusion of the regular season, Ayayi was named Honorable Mention All-West Coast Conference (WCC).[9] On 10 March, he helped Gonzaga win the WCC tournament and was named Most Outstanding Player after scoring 17 points in the final against Saint Mary's.[10] He averaged 10.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 3.2 per game for the Bulldogs and was All-WCC honorable mention. Following the season he declared for the 2020 NBA draft but did not hire an agent.[11] On 1 August, Ayayi announced he was withdrawing from the draft and returning for his junior season.[12]

Coming into his junior season, Ayayi was named to the Preseason All-WCC team.[13] On 9 January 2021, he recorded the first triple-double in program history, with 12 points, 13 rebounds and 14 assists in a 116–88 win over Portland. He also tallied the second-most assists for a Gonzaga player in a single game.[14] As a junior, he averaged 12 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game and was named to the First Team All-West Coast Conference. Following the season, Ayayi declared for the 2021 NBA draft and forgo his remaining college eligibility.[15]

Professional career

Washington Wizards (2021–2022)

After going undrafted in the 2021 NBA draft, Ayayi signed a two-way contract with the Los Angeles Lakers on 3 August 2021. Under the terms of the deal he was to split time between the Lakers and their NBA G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers.[16] On 15 October, he was waived by Los Angeles[17] and two days later, he signed a two-way contract with the Washington Wizards.[18] Ayayi was then later waived on 8 March 2022.[19]

Capital City Go-Go (2022)

On March 11, 2022, Ayayi was reacquired by the Capital City Go-Go.[20]

Ayayi joined the Atlanta Hawks for the 2022 NBA Summer League.[21]

Lakeland Magic (2022–2023)

On November 3, 2022, Ayayi was named to the opening night roster for the Lakeland Magic.[22]

Nanterre 92 (2023–present)

On July 23, 2023, Ayayi signed with Nanterre 92 of the LNB Pro A.[23]

National team career

Ayayi holds dual citizenship to France and his parents' home country of Benin, but he plays basketball for the French national teams.[24] At the 2016 FIBA U16 European Championship in Radom, Poland, he averaged 11.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per game for France.[25] Ayayi led his team to a bronze medal at the 2018 FIBA U18 European Championship in Latvia. After averaging 15.7 points per game, he was named to the All-Star Five.[26] Ayayi helped France win bronze at the 2019 FIBA Under-19 Basketball World Cup in Heraklion, Greece, where he earned All-Star Five honors. He averaged 20.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game and led all scorers with 33 points in a bronze medal game against Lithuania.[27]

Career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

NBA
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2021–22 Washington 702.9.167.000–.4.6.0.0.3
Career 702.9.167.000–.4.6.0.0.3

College
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017–18 Gonzaga Redshirt Redshirt
2018–19 Gonzaga 2305.6.531.273.2861.4.5.301.7
2019–20 Gonzaga 332329.3.483.345.8256.33.21.3.210.6
2020–21 Gonzaga 323131.3.575.389.7816.92.71.1.212.0
Career 885423.8.529.360.7765.22.3.9.28.8

Personal life

Both of Ayayi's parents are from Benin.[28] His father stands 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) and played basketball professionally in France and for the Beninese national team.[24] Ayayi's older sister Valériane has played for the French women's national team, most notably at the 2016 Summer Olympics, and in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).[29][30] His younger brother Gérald plays professional basketball in France.[24]

References
  1. Lawson, Theo (23 March 2019). "Gonzaga's Killian Tillie and Joel Ayayi meet French icon, idol Boris Diaw after Baylor win". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  2. Hein, David (27 April 2017). "CFBB's Ayayi learns from big sister". Adidas Next Generation tournament. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  3. "Joel Ayayi, 2017 Point guard". Rivals.com. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  4. Woodburn, Peter (27 April 2017). "2017 Recruiting: French guard Joel Ayayi commits to Gonzaga". The Slipper Still Fits. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  5. Laurin, Emmanuel (2 December 2017). "Joël Ayayi, ou la découverte de la NCAA à 17 ans" (in French). Basket USA. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  6. "Joel Ayayi". Gonzaga University Athletics. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  7. Beard, Aaron (28 November 2019). "Kispert, No. 8 Gonzaga top Southern Miss 94-69 at Atlantis". Associated Press. Retrieved 18 December 2019.
  8. Hines, Travis (10 January 2020). "Filip Petrusev, No. 1 Gonzaga race past San Diego 94–50". NBC Sports. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
  9. "WCC Announces 2019-20 Men's Basketball All-Conference Team" (Press release). West Coast Conference. 3 March 2020. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
  10. "Zags Crowned WCC Tournament Champs". Gonzaga University Athletics. Associated Press. 10 March 2020. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
  11. Meehan, Jim (25 April 2020). "Joel Ayayi declares for NBA draft but indicates No. 1 option is returning to Gonzaga". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  12. "Gonzaga's Joel Ayayi withdraws from NBA draft, will return to school for junior season". ESPN. Associated Press. 1 August 2020. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  13. "Gonzaga Picked to Win Ninth Straight WCC Championship". West Coast Conference. 26 October 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
  14. Greene, Brenna (9 January 2021). "Joel Ayayi becomes first Gonzaga player ever to record a triple-double in Gonzaga win". KREM (TV). Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  15. Coleman, Madeline (9 April 2021). "Gonzaga Star Joel Ayayi Declares for 2021 NBA Draft". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  16. "Lakers Sign Joel Ayayi and Austin Reaves to Two-Way Contracts". Los Angeles Lakers. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  17. "Lakers Make Training Camp Cuts". NBA.com. 15 October 2021. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
  18. "Wizards claim Joel Ayayi". NBA.com. 17 October 2021. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
  19. "NBA Transactions". nba.com. 8 March 2022. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  20. "2021-22 NBA G League Transactions". gleague.nba.com. 11 March 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  21. "Atlanta Hawks 2022 NBA2K23 Summer League Roster". NBA.com. Retrieved 5 July 2022.
  22. "Lakeland Magic Announce 2022-23 Opening Night Roster". OurSportsCentral.com. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  23. Skerletic, Dario (23 July 2023). "Nanterre 92 lands Joel Ayayi". Sportando.basketball. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  24. Meehan, Jim (13 October 2018). "Gonzaga redshirt sophomore Joel Ayayi tries to carve out role among deep roster". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
  25. Woodburn, Peter (26 July 2018). "Joel Ayayi playing for France in the FIBA U18 European Championships". The Slipper Still Fits. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
  26. "Ayayi and Petrusev Shine at FIBA U18 European Championship". Gonzaga University Athletics. 6 August 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
  27. "Gonzaga's Oumar Ballo and Joel Ayayi make All-Star Five at FIBA World Cup". The Spokesman-Review. 7 July 2019. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
  28. Givony, Jonathan; Schmitz, Mike (11 June 2016). "2016 adidas Eurocamp: Day Two". DraftExpress. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
  29. "Joel Ayayi following his sister on the path to success". FIBA. 17 August 2016. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
  30. Meehan, Jim (27 April 2017). "French guard Joel Ayayi signs with Gonzaga". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
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