(670 The Score) On countless occasions during Bulls rookie guard Ayo Dosunmu’s debut NBA season, coach Billy Donovan has praised Dosunmu’s determined mindset and willingness to be coached hard and handle the truth, good or bad.
Where does that come from? Dosunmu has often credited his parents, father Quam and mother Jamarra, who provided him endless support in his journey through Morgan Park High School and the University of Illinois. Among many lessons Quam imparted on Ayo, one of the tactics that Quam used as a teaching point was sports talk radio, as he and Ayo would often tune into 670 The Score. He wanted to teach Ayo how to handle criticism and keep an "even-keeled" mindset.
“When your child tells you he wants to be a professional athlete, you put him in a situation to be successful,” Quam said on the Parkins & Spiegel Show on Thursday afternoon. “And I knew he had to listen to talk radio so he could learn how to listen to, talk about different things, so he could learn how to listen to other people’s opinion and understand that it’s their opinions and how it makes you a better person.
“You listen to all, it just makes you a better person. Because people are going to talk about you. If you are going to be a professional, they’re going to talk about you. So you might as well learn how to have thick skin, learn to understand how the game is played and just enjoy it.”
Quam liked to listen to postgame reaction to Bears and Bulls contests as Ayo grew up.
“Understand, son, understand, it’s only their opinion,” Quam would tell Ayo. “Everything is not a fact.”
Dosunmu had a strong rookie season, averaging 8.8 points and 3.3 assists while shooting 37.6% on 3-pointers in 77 games, including 40 starts. His role has been reduced in the playoffs with the Bulls healthier and the stakes larger.
Dosunmu played seven minutes off the bench in the Bulls’ 114-110 win against the Bucks in Game 2 of their first-round series Wednesday. The series is even 1-1. Game 3 is Friday at the United Center.