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CHAMPAIGN — Ayo Dosunmu was cleaning out his camera roll on his phone recently when he came across what arguably could be called one of the most important photographs from Brad Underwood’s tenure as Illinois coach.

Underwood made sure Dosunmu was one of the first recruits he visited when he took the Illinois job in March 2017. The photo Dosunmu stumbled across recently captured that moment with the Illinois coaches during that home visit.

The previous Illini staff had recruited the five-star Morgan Park guard, but there was stiff competition from Wake Forest and Southern Cal with Kansas looming. Underwood also didn’t have all that much time at least in that era of recruiting or anything concrete to show at Illinois to make a pitch.

Dosunmu set his commitment for Oct. 19 that same year — just seven months after Underwood took the job — and made a decision that changed both his life and the trajectory of Illinois basketball.

Not quite nine years after Dosunmu chose Illinois during a ceremony at the Jordan Brand Store in downtown Chicago he was inducted into the Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame on Friday night. The legacy Dosunmu was seeking when he did the unpopular thing and picked the Illini is now firmly cemented.

“Looking at the picture, in that moment, you don’t know what the future holds,” Dosunmu said. “Now, looking back at it, that was a huge memory.”

A memory Underwood holds on to just as strongly. Landing Dosunmu was just the start. Illinois helped develop the 6-foot-5 guard into a consensus First Team All-American and Bob Cousy Award winner by his junior season where he led the Illini to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.

Dosunmu was selected in the second round of the 2021 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls and spent 4 1/2 seasons with his hometown team before a trade deadline deal sent him to the Minnesota Timberwolves this past February. A move that was followed by signing a five-year, $112 million extension to stay in Minnesota.

“I couldn’t be any more proud of him and what he’s achieved,” Underwood said. “He was one of the first guys that I went to see when I got the job here. We locked in with him. What an unbelievable career here, and now, he’s carrying that on at the next level.

“It was more than just being a great player. He was a great ambassador for the state of Illinois. He was a great ambassador for our university.”

Illinois has, in the nine years since Dosunmu committed, continued to add more and more high-level talent. He remains the first. The foundation upon a revitalized Illini basketball program was built.

Dosunmu took a risk in choosing Illinois — in trusting that Underwood could build something from almost nothing — but never faltered in his belief of what could be accomplished.

“When I committed to Illinois, no disrespect to the greats or the players before me, but, in my opinion it wasn’t cool,” Dosunmu said. “It wasn’t looked upon to come to Illinois if you were from Chicago. That just wasn’t the thing.”

What Dosunmu had around him, though, was an inner circle comprising his close family that had more than just the next few years in mind when it came to picking a college basketball destination. The goal was always to get to the NBA, but that wasn’t the only big picture focus.

“You only get to play in college for so many years,” Dosunmu said. “You only get to play in the NBA for so many years. It’s all about what people will remember when you’re done playing. The legacy you’ve left. The mark you’ve left. The relationships you’ve built. That means a lot.

“It takes a lot of great people, mentors, in your corner to tell you it’s not just about these 3-4 years (in college). It’s about the 10 years after that. What place can you leave a legacy? I think I made the best decision in my life coming to Illinois.”

Dosunmu’s legacy at Illinois is clear. His arrival in Champaign helped spark a renaissance for a program that had fallen out of its place among the Big Ten’s best and out of the national college basketball conversation.

That impact on the court was recognized first with his No. 11 jersey now hanging in the State Farm Center rafters. Now, comes his spot in the hall of fame alongside other basketball greats like Flyin’ Illini Nick Anderson and Kendall Gill, Dee Brown, Deron Williams and fellow 2026 inductee James Augustine from the 2004-05 national runner-up team, all-time leading scorer Deon Thomas and more than two dozen more.

“The only thing that could have been better is a national champion,” Dosunmu said. “Besides that, I think I’ve created a legacy that’s pretty well cemented now. Champaign has a special place in my heart because it helped change my life. It’s a huge part of my life. It means something to me. In terms of legacy, I think this is a pretty well-blessed legacy.”