Georges Niang (born June 17, 1993), nicknamed "The Minivan", is a Senegalese-American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player for the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA). He was an All-American college player for

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the n ...

High school career

A three-year starter and two-year team captain, Niang capped off his career as one of the greatest players in The Tilton School history, amassing a school-record 2,372 points. He was a three-time First-Team All-NEPSAC Class AA pick, Niang was the 2012 NEPSAC Class AA Player of the Year. He averaged 25.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game as a senior, averaged 24.2 points and 8.2 rebounds as a junior and led his team to the 2011 NEPSAC Class AA championship with a 72-56 win over St. Mark's. He was named outstanding player of the tournament, scoring 23 points on 11-of-11 shooting from the field in the championship game. His team lost in the 2011 National Prep Championship to Notre Dame Prep (87-85), as Niang scored 31 points. He played for the Boston-based BABC AAU team, the same program that featured former

Cyclone In meteorology, a cyclone () is a large air mass that rotates around a strong center of low atmospheric pressure, counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere as viewed from above (opposite to an anti ...

and NBA player

Will Blalock William Anthony Blalock (born September 8, 1983 in Boston) is a former American professional basketball player, who last played for the Saint John Mill Rats of the National Basketball League of Canada. Early years Blalock played basketball at Ea ...

. His BABC squad won the 2011 Nike Peach Jam, one of the most competitive AAU tournaments in the country. He was teammates at Tilton and in AAU with

Nerlens Noel Nerlens Noel (born April 10, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His collegiate basketball career ended in his first season with a tear of his anterior cruciate ...

, they won four NEPSAC titles, one national prep championship, one AAU national championship and one Nike EYBL title in his career. Niang was considered one of the best players on the East Coast, ending his prep career as a consensus national top-100 recruit. He was ranked No. 42 by Lindy's, No. 56 by

ESPNU ESPNU is an American multinational digital cable and satellite sports television channel owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between the Disney Media Networks division of The Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and the Hears ...

, No. 69 by

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, No. 69 by

Rivals.com Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...

, No. 73 by

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, and No. 81 by

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in the 2012 prep national rankings. He also had offers from

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

, and

Seton Hall Seton Hall University (SHU) is a private Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesa ...

, eventually committing to

Iowa State Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the n ...

College career

Big 12 Championship (25772775155) (cropped)

Niang was named to the Big 12 All-Rookie Team in his freshman year in 2013. In the second round of the 2014 NCAA tournament, Niang broke the

fifth metatarsal The fifth metatarsal bone is a long bone in the foot, and is palpable along the distal outer edges of the feet. It is the second smallest of the five metatarsal bones. The fifth metatarsal is analogous to the fifth metacarpal bone in the hand. As ...

in his right foot, forcing him to sit for the remainder of the event. As a sophomore, he averaged 16.7 points and 4.5 rebounds as the third most prominent offensive weapon for Iowa State behind

Melvin Ejim Melvin Obinna Ejim (born March 4, 1991) is a Nigerian-Canadian professional basketball player for Unicaja of the Liga ACB. He played college basketball for Iowa State University before playing professionally in Italy, Russia and Spain, as well as ...

and

DeAndre Kane DeAndre Kane (born June 10, 1989) is an American-born naturalized Hungarian professional basketball player for Grindavík in the Úrvalsdeild karla. He played college basketball at Marshall University and Iowa State University before playing pro ...

. Niang cut back on his calorie consumption in the 2014 offseason and consequently slimmed down to 230 pounds from 260 pounds. As a junior, Niang led the team in scoring with 15.3 points per game to go along with 5.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. Seeded third in the 2015 NCAA tournament, the Cyclones were upset by 14th seeded UAB in the round of 64 despite 11 points and seven rebounds from Niang. He considered entering the 2015 NBA Draft, but instead decided to return for his senior season. "I was weighing it, but I want to be loyal to the program and didn't want to go out this way," Niang said. "I didn't want to leave my mark like that." Niang surpassed the 2,000-point threshold as a senior, averaging 20.2 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. He was named to the 35-man midseason watchlist for the

Naismith College Player of the Year The Naismith College Player of the Year is an annual basketball award given by the Atlanta Tipoff Club to the top men's and women's collegiate basketball players. It is named in honor of Dr. James Naismith, the inventor of basketball. History an ...

on February 11. During his college career, Niang achieved a number program records, including the first player to reach four straight NCAA tournaments, the first two-time All-American, the career leader in games played (138) and most wins (98).

Professional career

Indiana Pacers (2016–2017)

On June 23, 2016, Niang was selected by the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The Pacers were first esta ...

with the 50th overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft. He joined the team for the

2016 NBA Summer League The 2016 NBA Summer League consisted of three pro basketball leagues organized by the National Basketball Association (NBA): the Orlando Pro Summer League, Utah Jazz Summer League, and Las Vegas Summer League. Ten teams participated in the week ...

, where his early play drew praise from

Larry Bird Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and executive in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Hick from French Lick" and "Larry Legend", Bird is widely regarded a ...

. On July 11, 2016, he signed with the Pacers. During his rookie season, he had multiple assignments with the

Fort Wayne Mad Ants The Fort Wayne Mad Ants are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and are affiliated with the Indiana Pacers. The team plays their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. The M ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

. On July 14, 2017, he was waived by the Pacers.

Santa Cruz Warriors (2017–2018)

On August 16, 2017, Niang signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...

. He was waived by the Warriors on October 14, 2017. He subsequently joined the

Santa Cruz Warriors The Santa Cruz Warriors are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Santa Cruz, California, and are affiliated with the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors play their home games at Kaiser Permanente Arena. Prior to ...

as an affiliate player.

Utah Jazz (2018–2021)

On January 14, 2018, Niang signed a

two-way contract A two-way contract is a professional sports contract that stipulates that an athlete's salary is dependent upon the league in which the athlete is assigned to play. This is opposed to a one-way contract that would pay the same salary regardless of ...

with the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

to take up a spot previously held by former college teammate

Naz Mitrou-Long Nazareth Jersey Mitrou-Long is a Greek-Canadian professional basketball player for Olimpia Milano of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) and the EuroLeague. He played college basketball for the Iowa State Cyclones. Born in Mississauga, Ontario, ...

. Throughout the rest of the season, he split his playing time between the Jazz and their

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

affiliate, the

Salt Lake City Stars The Salt Lake City Stars are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Salt Lake City, Utah, and are affiliated with the Utah Jazz. As of the 2022-23 season, the Stars play in the Maverik Center in West Valley City, U ...

. On July 13, 2018, Niang signed a standard contract with the Jazz. Niang scored a career high 24 points against the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...

on April 10, 2019. He also notched a 24 point game against the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...

on May 8, 2021.

Philadelphia 76ers (2021–present)

On August 9, 2021, Niang signed a 2-year, $6.7 million contract with the

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

, 23 , , 0 , , 4.0 , , .250 , , .083 , , 1.000 , , .7 , , .2 , , .1 , , .0 , , .9 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, 9 , , 0 , , 3.6 , , .364 , , .000 , , .500 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , .2 , , .0 , , 1.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 59 , , 0 , , 8.7 , , .475 , , .410 , , .833 , , 1.5 , , .6 , , .2 , , .1 , , 4.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 66 , , 1 , , 14.0 , , .438 , , .400 , , .833 , , 1.9 , , .7 , , .3 , , .1 , , 5.9 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 72 , , 10 , , 16.0 , , .437 , , .425 , , .957 , , 2.4 , , .8 , , .3 , , .1 , , 6.9 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

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, 76 , , 7 , , 22.8 , , .437 , , .403 , , .881 , , 2.7 , , 1.3 , , .4 , , .2 , , 9.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 305 , , 18 , , 14.6 , , .437 , , .404 , , .873 , , 2.0 , , .8 , , .3 , , .1 , , 6.1

Playoffs

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, 5 , , 0 , , 11.0 , , .409 , , .308 , , — , , 2.8 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , .2 , , 4.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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, 7 , , 0 , , 16.3 , , .500 , , .414 , , 1.000 , , 2.1 , , .6 , , .0 , , .1 , , 8.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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, style="text-align:left;",

, 11 , , 0 , , 11.7 , , .282 , , .300 , , 1.000 , , 1.7 , , .7 , , .0 , , .1 , , 3.2 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 12 , , 0 , , 16.5 , , .417 , , .372 , , 1.000 , , 1.5 , , .9 , , .3 , , .0 , , 4.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 35 , , 0 , , 14.2 , , .405 , , .357 , , 1.000 , , 1.9 , , .8 , , .1 , , .1 , , 4.9

College

, - , style="text-align:left;",

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, 35 , , 23 , , 25.1 , , .515 , , .392 , , .700 , , 4.6 , , 1.8 , , .7 , , .2 , , 12.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2013–14 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 34 , , 30.1 , , .474 , , .327 , , .721 , , 4.5 , , 3.6 , , .6 , , .6 , , 16.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2014–15 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 34 , , 30.7 , , .461 , , .400 , , .808 , , 5.4 , , 3.4 , , .5 , , .5 , , 15.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 34 , , 33.2 , , .546 , , .390 , , .813 , , 6.2 , , 3.3 , , .9 , , .6 , , 20.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 121 , , 109 , , 29.2 , , .490 , , .375 , , .762 , , 5.1 , , 3.0 , , .6 , , .5 , , 15.4

Personal life

Niang is the son of Sidy and Alison Niang. His father was born and raised in

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 � ...

. He was elected student body president at Tilton Prep.

References

External links

Iowa State Cyclones bio

Georges Niang
at draftexpress.com * {{DEFAULTSORT:Niang, Georges 1993 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportspeople African-American basketball players All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players American people of Senegalese descent American sportspeople of African descent Sportspeople of Senegalese descent Basketball players from Massachusetts Fort Wayne Mad Ants players Forwards (basketball) Indiana Pacers draft picks Indiana Pacers players Iowa State Cyclones men's basketball players National Basketball Association players from Senegal Philadelphia 76ers players Salt Lake City Stars players Santa Cruz Warriors players Senegalese men's basketball players Sportspeople from Lawrence, Massachusetts Utah Jazz players Tilton School alumni