Max Amadasun’s basketball journey began in Ireland, and after stops in New York City and Pittsburgh, the 6-foot-10 center will suit up for St. Bonaventure this season. Photo courtesy of St. Bonaventure Athletics

ST. BONAVENTURE — 29.5 inches.

That’s the size of a standard basketball.

As it turns out, that 29.5-inch ball was all it would take to bring Max Amadasun on a journey from across the pond in Dublin, Ireland, to the Enchanted Mountains of Western New York.

Ten years ago, if you told a young Amadasun this is how his early 20s would play out, suiting up for St. Bonaventure’s basketball team, that young Irish kid of Nigerian descent would most likely give you a bewildered look.

That’s because, up until his teenage years, the sport that had the heart of the now 6-foot-10 Bonaventure center required a ball at his feet, not in his hands.

“Growing up in Ireland, basketball obviously isn’t the main sport, so I wasn’t introduced to it straight away,” said Amadasun, who spent two seasons at Pittsburgh before transferring into the Bonnies program this summer. “I actually played soccer first and I credit that to a lot of my game in basketball because it translates with the footwork. When I was about 13 or 14 one of my friends told me to come join his team and after the first practice, I loved it.”

Once Amadasun’s love affair with basketball was off and running, after a few years of development in Ireland, he found himself in the “Mecca of Basketball” playing for Our Savior Lutheran in the Bronx.

Despite a high motor and desire to get better, the adjustment to basketball, especially in New York City, took time before things started to click.

“At first it was very tough, I didn’t know anybody, the competition was a lot better but once I got used to it, I really enjoyed it,” explained the redshirt sophomore.

Following that acclamation period, the tall, 250-pound Irishman became a load to deal with for forwards in the New York City area. As a senior, Amadasun averaged 13 points and 11 boards, as he guided Our Savior Lutheran to a 36-4 record.

Along the way came opportunities to represent Ireland in international competition, including the U-16 Euros in 2016, where he averaged over 11 rebounds per outing.

All this culminated in Amadasun being ranked the fifth overall prospect in New York for his class, with a passion for competing to go with it.

“The main thing about the game in New York is you learn to never back down from your opponent,” he said. “There is a lot of one-on-one action, you get the Dykeman, Rucker Park, you’re brought up playing one-on-one. You learn to go at your matchup and play relentlessly.”

That relentless playing style drew the attention of college coaches, including Atlantic 10 foes like Rhode Island and UMass, who flooded Amadasun with offers. He eventually decided on Pittsburgh of the ACC and spent two years with the Panthers.

During Amadasun’s time in western Pennsylvania, he appeared in 11 games for Pitt in a limited role before heading off to explore other options, eventually choosing St. Bonaventure as his destination.

“The sense of all work, staying focused on the main thing which was winning games and getting better was the best thing they sold me on, obviously that’s the main thing I was looking for in a school,” shared Amadasun when asked what appealed to him about SBU.

As a self-described curious person who is eager to learn, the Bonnies new center doesn’t back down to the challenge of learning a new system. Instead, Amadasun is excited with the task of learning coach Mark Schmidt’s expansive playbook, and already likes what he’s seen.

“Coach Schmidt, he’s a mastermind, I’ve seen a lot of the stuff he runs with his teams from previous games, and I really like the way his system is run,” he said. “I feel like my playing style can fit with a lot of teams.”

His style of play is something he describes simply as “a center who does what he needs to do.” Whether that’s protecting the rim, scoring inside or rebounding, all he cares about is trying to pile up wins with the Bonnies.

With the new campaign looming, one of the biggest questions on the minds of Bona faithful is how a team with so many new faces will mesh. Amadasun seems to think that’s a worry that needs to be put to rest as he gets ready for a fresh start in WNY.

“It (summer session) was great. I love each and every one of them, they’re my teammates, they can say the same thing about me,” he said. “I feel like we have already gelled, and that’s going to be a big part of our season, just the chemistry all together.”

Amadasun, a computer science major, also comes to Bonaventure seeing the bigger picture down the road. He aspires to work with technology and software “that can better the world” once his days of locking down opponents on the block is over.

With that being said, the thing that excites the South Dubliner the most, a month away from the season, is taking to the floor in front of a sold-out Reilly Center crowd, matching up with new A-10 opponents.

“I want to see what The RC is like when it’s packed,” he said. “I want to see all these A-10 schools and what they are about. Just getting out there and playing will be the best thing.”