A female NBA referee was reportedly warned by the league’s front office for groping a Chicago Bulls player during the Bulls vs Brooklyn Nets game on Monday, Dec. 2.
A screenshot from the game shows former USC star Simone Jelks allegedly grope Bulls guard Ayo Dosunmu in the nether region.
Jelks, 38, graduated from the University of Southern California in 2008. After officiating three years of college basketball, Jelks officiated 16 regular-season NBA games as a non-staff official. She was promoted to the NBA officiating staff on December 23, 2020.
Referees are cautioned not to get too personal with NBA players, but Dosunmu is so fine that Jelks probably couldn’t resist.
Ayo Dosunmu is emerging as the Bulls’ best 2-way player. The 24-year-old, 6-ft-5 star is a fan favorite in Chicago, where he was born on January 17, 2000.
Chicago re-signed Dosunmu (left) to a multi-year $21 million contract in 2023 after drafting him in 2020. He continued to show his gratitude to his hometown fans by hosting a block party and basketball clinic for children in one of Chicago’s most violent neighborhoods.
“No matter if I re-signed with the Bulls or not, me being from Chicago my main focus was still the same,” Dosunmu told The NY Times. “I still was going to always try to give back to my city. This is the city that raised me. This is the city that made me. But of course, re-signing back with the Bulls now, it gives me more flexibility to be more on-hand.”
“Being in that small percentile of NBA players who get to get drafted to their hometown, I think that’s a huge blessing for me and I think it comes with a lot of responsibilities,” Dosunmu said. “And one of them, I think, is just giving back. I always love to give back. That was always a dream of mine. And now that I have the chance and the platform and the opportunity, I’m going to try to do as much as I can.”
