Player Profile: Butler's Michael Ajayi

A while ago, I wrote about the first two transfers to commit to Butler, Jalen Jackson and Yame Butler. Those two guys will both play big minutes in the backcourt, but perhaps the most surprising addition to this team was in the frontcourt, Power Forward Michael Ajayi. 

Ajayi was one of ten guys on the All-WCC First Team in 2023-24, where he averaged 17.2PPG and 9.9RPG, while shooting 46.7% from the field and 47% from beyond the arc (1.2 makes per game). Ajayi primarily works in the interior and was selected to participate in the NBA combine after this season, but decided to return to school and play at Gonzaga this past season. 

At Gonzaga, Ajayi’s role took a step back, as he was playing next to stars Ryan Nembhard and Graham Ike, who took the bulk of the shots for the Zags. Ajayi averaged 6.5PPG and 5.4RPG as more of a role player for Gonzaga, starting 13 games last season. A lot of Gonzaga’s offense came from pick and rolls with Nembhard and Ike, arguably the best PnR combo in all of college basketball last season, and they were looking for spread shooters next to those guys, which isn’t Ajayi’s natural role.

One of the things that really stood out to me on tape was Ajayi’s ability to cut to the basket. He played off of Gonzaga’s excellent passing bigs very well last season. While Butler’s bigs will not be the same level of passers, Ajayi’s ability to cut to the basket still could be very useful on Pick and Rolls with Finley Bizjack, Jalen Jackson and Yame Butler, or next to skilled forwards like Jack McCaffery.

Two seasons ago, Ajayi was in the 98th percentile in catch-and-shoot three-point situations. Last season, Ajayi ranked in just the eighth percentile in this same statistic, marking a very steep drop-off. Should Ajayi recapture his shooting form, it could go a long way toward looking like the player from Pepperdine, who saw just about every school in the country recruiting him in the transfer portal. I wouldn’t expect the elite, elite marksmanship we saw two seasons ago, but every indication is that Ajayi is a much better shooter than his numbers showed last season.

However, only just over 20% of Ajayi’s shot attempts in the past two seasons come from beyond the arc. Ajayi rather uses his unique combination of size and ball-handling abilities to bully defenders to the rim and convert around the rim. 

His percentage around the rim improved in his year with Gonzaga, despite going up against better competition (non-conference). This is where Ajayi is at his best, using his combination of size, strength and leaping ability around the rim to convert around the rim. The floor spacing provided by Gonzaga’s bigs aided this, but Ajayi also converted in some tough situations. How this translates against bigger, stronger, more physical Big East competition will go a long way to determining if Ajayi can reach his All-Big East ceiling.

One thing I noticed about Ajayi in both his time at Gonzaga and Pepperdine is that he settles for some tough mid-range jumpers off the dribble, and isn’t efficient with these shots. He was in the 28th percentile in off-the-dribble shooting at Pepperdine, and that number dropped to 11th percentile last season. He settles for a lot of tough mid-range pull-ups, too many for my liking. With the ball likely being in his hands so much, Ajayi has to be more aggressive for this Butler team and not settle for tough looks off the bounce. 

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The past two seasons, Butler has been pretty poor on the glass. Michael Ajayi addresses this issue as one of the best rebounders in the country. He was Top-20 in the country in rebounding two seasons ago with Pepperdine, and had the second-best defensive rebounding percentage in the WCC last year. He’s very aggressive on the glass, which has been something the Bulldogs have struggled with in every year of Matta’s tenure.

Overall, Ajayi has heavy shoes to fill, replacing Jahmyl Telfort. A lot of what Telfort brought will have to be replaced by the aggregate. Ajayi is a good passer, but not as good as Telfort. Having a more natural PG with Jalen Jackson will help to alleviate some of Telfort’s ball handling responsibilities, and allow Ajayi to play his more natural role as a face-up scoring Power Forward, and maybe even a small-ball center if the need ever arises.

Ajayi’s got multiple ways he can score the ball, and his full offensive arsenal will be on display for the Bulldogs. How he fares against a league that has bigger and stronger guys than on the West Coast will make a big difference in how he translates to Butler. He could easily be one of Butler’s leading scorers, but what fans will love is his aggression on the glass, both offensive and defensive glass. 

I don’t know if I would have him on an All-Conference team if I was making my preseason list today, but Ajayi is most certainly in that conversation and if you watch him for a bit, you can see why.