When the Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold men's basketball team finished up their final regular season game of the 2024-25 season last February, multiple fourth-year players received standing ovations from the crowd as they were honoured for Senior Night. TMU Head Coach David DeAveiro handed each graduating player a bouquet of flowers and a framed picture of themselves before snapping some pictures to commemorate the last time each player would step onto the Mattamy Athletic Centre court as a member of the Bold.

For two of the three seniors that were honoured that night, the moment would serve as a memorable farewell to their collegiate careers. For Aidan Wilson, the third and final player, the moment seemingly served the same purpose.

Just a few months later, though, he returned.

Wilson had decided to stay with the Bold for his fifth year of eligibility as they kicked off their 2025-26 regular season in September. There were multiple reasons for the victory lap, but at the end of the day, Wilson did it for the team culture.

"I've been a part of a couple other college teams," he explained, "and it's pretty rare for everyone in the locker room to be friends. Everyone gets along, there's no 'cliquing up'...it's a pretty special thing."

The other college teams that Wilson referred to were both located in British Columbia, his home province. After spending his freshman season with the Douglas College Royals in New Westminster, the 6-10 forward quickly transferred to the University of Fraser Valley Cascades, where he spent both the COVID-19-ridden 2020-21 season and the 2021-22 season.

After a solid outing with the Cascades, Wilson decided to transfer to TMU, the school that would become his newfound family:

"A big factor in that [transition] was that the OUA has really talented players…I wanted to test myself against some of the best college or university-level competition in Canada."

"I had heard a lot about [then] Ryerson," he continued, "I was wanting to be a part of the basketball team that was in the centre of it all as far as being in the city. It was also a bit of a life decision — I wanted to get out of my hometown."

After touching down in Toronto, Wilson underwent a mandatory "redshirt" year of non-competition during the 2022-23 season. Although it meant he wouldn't be able to step on the court for the blue and gold, he took the opportunity to sharpen his skills:

"It was a great year for development…I wasn't travelling, so I was able to get in the gym a lot. I attribute a lot of my development to that year."

During the following 2023-24 season, Wilson was the self-proclaimed "new kid on the block" in the Bold's forward rotation. With current professional player Lincoln Rosebush and longtime TMU player Elijah Roye earning most of the minutes at his position, he wasn't quite able to showcase his newfound abilities.

Wilson finally got his chance during the 2024-25 season. The year would be a successful one in numerous different ways for the forward: individual success, team success, and, most importantly, team chemistry.

Coach DeAveiro had recruited a number of young talents onto the roster, totaling up to 11 first or second-year players on the squad alongside the now fourth-year Wilson and a few others. The personalities immediately clicked: they had become a brotherhood, not just a basketball team.

"Last year was big for us in solidifying that team culture, and having a group of young guys come in that really bought into what Coach DeAveiro and the assistant coaches were trying to do here," explained Wilson, "that plays a huge role in building a universal attitude towards the game."

That type of culture doesn't come around every day. It requires an extremely special group of athletes to come together as friends both off the court and off the court. Not every player is able to get along with all of their teammates, and not every player is able to buy into a coach's ideology — but every member of that Bold squad did both of those things.

"You can see that in teams, even at the NBA level, that try to put together super teams, trying to put the most talent you possibly can on a team," said Wilson, "but talent alone doesn't win championships…it's really about having guys that trust each other off the floor, and that translates onto the floor: trusting your teammate to do what they do best."

That chemistry led to the Bold's most successful season in over five years: they advanced to the OUA semifinal, finishing just one win away from earning a spot in the U SPORTS national championship tournament.

Wilson thrived with the trust of his teammates, starting in 23 of his 24 games played and notching a team-high 1.5 blocks per game.

"It was the best year of basketball I've had in my college career, as far as how great the guys were," he praised.

After such a positive experience, Wilson's mind was torn as his graduation date crept closer and closer:

"I'm 24 now, and I've been in college for way too long in my opinion," he joked, "I just wanted to be done with school and move on to either playing professionally or working. But I still had that one year of eligibility."

But by the time he was accepting the flowers and picture from Coach DeAveiro on senior night, his mind was made up: he just couldn't leave such an incredible team culture and atmosphere. 

"Having the senior night was a bit of a failsafe in case I decided otherwise. But I think by the playoffs, I was pretty certain I was going to come back," he explained.

The decision ended up being a smart one on Wilson's part: the Bold have stormed out to yet another strong start this season, and the team chemistry is higher than ever.

In his fifthyear, Wilson has helped lead the squad to an 8-2 record whilst leading the squad in blocks per game and placing second in offensive rebounds per game. His veteran presence has helped guide the still-young squad on the court.

Each and every player on the team is connected like family, and it's resulted in success.

"The guys are always out, supporting our [other TMU varsity] teams and stuff like that," said Wilson, "a lot of it is guys having team dinners on road trips, hanging out in the [hotel] common area…everyone's always together, and everyone's always happy to be around each other."

"We have guys now that are living downtown in their own apartments, sharing apartments, or in residence. Everyone's in this little 'block' down near the school, so everyone's always hanging out after practice," he continued.

The team chemistry of this year's Bold squad is undeniably strong. Coach DeAveiro has put together a roster of like-minded individuals that trust each other both on and off of the court, and it's led to success. Anchored by Wilson in the paint, TMU is aiming for  their first U SPORTS National Championship run since the 2018-19 season:

"Expectations are to win the OUA and to go to Nationals," boasted Wilson, "I'm confident in us and the coaching staff. I think anything else would be a bit of a disappointment."