Boys basketball has been underway for nearly a month, and one junior guard has played a crucial role in the team’s successes.

Daniel Ijadimbola is a somewhat recent addition to BSM’s squad, as he transferred to BSM from Park Center for his sophomore year. “I transferred to BSM because they have a great education system and I wanted to push myself academically. I also wanted more of an opportunity on the basketball side of things, where I could play varsity as an underclassman,” Ijadimbola said.

Though Ijadimbola is new to the squad, he leads the team in scoring, assists, and steals—it’s safe to say Ijadimbola is a very versatile player. He averages a cool 16.0 points per game and 3.7 assists with a 3-pt field goal percentage of 45% and 53.7% shooting from the field. Ijadimbola scores the majority of his buckets from inside the paint, but his offensive prowess stretches the entire length of the floor. “He’s an offensive threat for sure, but as for the team, he’s always scoring around the rim. Don’t sleep on the jumper though,” senior guard Noah Allen said.

Ijadimbola hasn’t only succeeded for BSM, he constantly brings the energy and his talents to his highly competitive AAU (Amatuear Athletic Union) team, MN Select, during the off-season. Ijadimbola even played for Park Center’s junior varsity team as a Freshman. This rich basketball history also led to Ijadimbola’s nickname, Shifty. “I like the name Shifty because it connects to basketball meaning I have a nice handle with a ball. I got in like 5th or 6th grade because me and my friend had handles that stood out around our teammates and they called us shifty so we decided to change our Instagram names and put shifty in front of it and that’s basically how it started,” Ijadimbola said.

Ijadimbola’s commitment to the game of basketball is unmatched by most players within the sport. He’s played basketball for as long as he can remember, so it’s no surprise his talents have reached such remarkable heights. Ijadimbola credits his skills to the amount of time he spends in the gym. “About every day I come in before school at around 6:00 a.m. and get a workout in with my assistant coach for an hour and 30 minutes, then we have practice after school. That’s what I do during the season, so I’m not too fatigued for our games,” Ijadimbola said.

Not only is Ijadimbola committed, talented, and invested in the game of basketball, he’s extremely passionate. “I love basketball because I have hunger for the game, all you need is a ball to get better and I love putting work in by myself,” Ijadimbola said.

This “hunger” for the game has helped Ijadimbola stay motivated after last year’s tough 5-21 season, though Ijadimbola is confident the team will become sections champs later this year. Ijadimbola looks to accomplish some personal goals aside from his goal for the team. “I’d like to get conference MVP or all-conference 1st team, but in general, my goal is to get a D1 offer,” Ijadimbola said.

Ijadimbola looks to continue his mid-season successes the entire year and is optimistic in the team’s ability to win deeper into 2021 when it really matters.