A surprising move, but the right one.
Michael Ajayi is the third Zag to enter his name into the transfer portal since it opened up on Monday. Dusty Stromer and Jun Seok Yeo were the first two.
The 6’7 senior forward could have stayed in Spokane for an additional season after the NCAA granting an extra year of eligibility for student-athletes who competed at a junior college. Instead, he will look elsewhere after averaging just 18.7 minutes per game and starting 13 games this season. In comparison, Ajayi played 34.7 minutes per game and had 33 starts the previous season with the Pepperdine Waves.
NEWS: Gonzaga’s Michael Ajayi — the WCC’s leading scorer and an All-Conference 1st Team member in 2024 — will enter the transfer portal, CAA Basketball’s NIL Division told ESPN. Ajayi averaged 17.5 points, 10.2 rebounds per game, shooting 47% for 3, at Pepperdine in 2023-24. pic.twitter.com/I5jWqwzqio
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) March 27, 2025
He never was the same capable offensive threat that was seen in Malibi where he lead the West Coast Conference in scoring with 17.2 per game while also grabbing 9.9 rebounds per game in 2023-24. His production in 2024-25 took a major dip to just 6.5 points per game on 44.6 field goal percentage/18.2 three-point percentage/69.5 free throw percentage to go along with 5.4 rebounds per game.
Towards the latter part of the season with the Zags, Ajayi was an animal with securing boards and locking down on defense out on the wing. In general, his energy was infectious during the point where Gonzaga won 12 of their last 15 games of the campaign.
Was this the correct move? Yes. The season didn’t go as planned for the Kent native as he looks for a new home where he can be seen as the focal point. Would Ajayi consider staying in the state of Washington with the Cougars or the Huskies?
The Zags currently have eight of next season’s 15 scholarship spots filled (Braeden Smith, Steele Venters, Emmanuel Innocenti, Jalen Warley, Braden Huff, Ismaila Diagne, Davis Fogle, Graham Ike,). Ike still has a decision to make with an extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA.
Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area… Follow him on Twitter @a_cravalho