Arizona natives Oso Ighodaro and TyTy Washington Jr. both aspired to play basketball at the next level and not only have they achieved a childhood dream of being on an NBA team, but they get to do so with the hometown Phoenix Suns.
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Ighodaro was born in Mesa, raised in Chandler and attended Desert Vista High School. Washington Jr. is from Phoenix and went to Cesar Chavez before transferring to AZ Compass Prep in Chandler when he was a junior.
While they grew up, the Suns were in a period where the team had stars like Steve Nash, Shaquille O’Neal and Amar’e Stoudemire, then struggled with multiple losing seasons, saw Devin Booker be drafted and them now able to make their own mark on the local franchise.
“It means a lot. I am excited, just blessed for the opportunity. Born and raised here, just growing up, coming to the games and watching Steve Nash, Amar’e Stoudemire, guys like that was really cool. Now that I am able to be back home and wear a Suns jersey, it is going to be really fun,” Washington Jr. said.
For Ighodaro, he didn’t necessarily follow the Suns as closely as Washington Jr. did. During the post-draft introductory press conference, the 6-foot-11 forward admitted he didn’t have a favorite team since the Suns “weren’t very good” but watched Kevin Durant who is now his teammate.
Still, he is more than appreciative of being drafted with the No. 40 overall pick this year and having the opportunity to become someone who kids nowadays look up to when playing for the Suns.
“It’s been great, there are so many kids in Arizona who love basketball and it’s a little bit slept on. A lot of talented kids come out of Arizona. To be that example of me and TyTy both coming from Arizona, you can do it. Just go about things the right way and give them somebody to look up to,” Ighodaro said.
AAU teammates reunite in NBA, life coming full circle
Both being 22 years old, with Ighodaro born in July 2002 and Washington Jr. in Nov. 2001, the two crossed paths before joining the Suns.
Competing against some of the best players that the state has to offer, the duo eventually played for the same AAU team. Spending as much time as they had, they already knew a thing or two about each other.
“It’s funny, me and Oso have known each other since seventh or eighth grade. We were AAU teammates back then and the crazy part is Oso was our center, but he was skinny and scrawny, he couldn’t catch,” Washington said. “We would always get on him and then in high school, he just worked, worked, worked.
“I remember his senior year when I was a junior, he took this thing very seriously and won the championship, ending up at Marquette. Seeing his development from afar was really good and now we are in the biggest league that there is where we are both teammates and we are both from the city. We can call each other teammates again and that is really cool.”
Washington Jr. was a five-star recruit out of high school and chose to play for Kentucky even though he received an offer from the University of Arizona. After two years of college, he was the No. 29 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft by the Memphis Grizzlies and traded twice on draft night, ending up with the Houston Rockets. He also played for the Milwaukee Bucks before signing a two-way contract with the Suns this August.
Ighodaro was a four-star recruit from Desert Vista and elected to pick Marquette where he played the past four seasons (2020-24) collegiately. The Portland Trail Blazers drafted him, but he was traded to the Suns.
Now that the two have reunited, they will both compete for a spot on the opening night roster at training camp and in preseason back home.
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Reporter Alec Cipollini covers the Phoenix Mercury, Suns and ASU Athletics for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @AlecCipollini
