Joël Ayayi

Joël Ayayi (born 5 March 2000) is a French-Beninese college basketball player for the Gonzaga Bulldogs of the West Coast Conference (WCC). Listed at 6 feet 5 inches (1.96 m) and 180 pounds (82 kg), he plays the shooting guard and point guard positions.

Joël Ayayi
No. 11 – Gonzaga Bulldogs
PositionShooting guard / Point guard
LeagueWest Coast Conference
Personal information
Born (2000-03-05) 5 March 2000
Bordeaux, France
NationalityFrench / Beninese
Listed height6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight180 lb (82 kg)
Career information
High schoolINSEP (Paris, France)
CollegeGonzaga (2018–present)
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  France
FIBA Under-19 World Cup
2019 GreeceTeam
FIBA U18 European Championship
2018 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] He was considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com 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
PG/SG		 Paris, France INSEP 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Apr 28, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   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 2017-05-20.

    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 August 1, 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]

    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.[15] At the 2016 FIBA U16 European Championship in Radom, Poland, he averaged 11.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per game for France.[16] 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.[17] 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.[18]

    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

    College
    Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
    2017–18 Gonzaga
    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
    Career 562319.6.488.338.7714.32.1.9.17.0

    Personal life

    Both of Ayayi's parents are from Benin.[19] His father stands 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) and played basketball professionally in France and for the Beninese national team.[15] 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).[20][21] His younger brother Gérald plays professional basketball in France.[15]

    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. 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.
    16. Woodburn, Peter (26 July 2018). "Joel Ayayi playing for France in the FIBA U18 European Championships". The Slipper Still Fits. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
    17. "Ayayi and Petrusev Shine at FIBA U18 European Championship". Gonzaga University Athletics. 6 August 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
    18. "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.
    19. Givony, Jonathan; Schmitz, Mike (11 June 2016). "2016 adidas Eurocamp: Day Two". DraftExpress. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
    20. "Joel Ayayi following his sister on the path to success". FIBA. 17 August 2016. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
    21. Meehan, Jim (27 April 2017). "French guard Joel Ayayi signs with Gonzaga". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
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