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Gorgui Dieng

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Gorgui Dieng
Dieng with the Atlanta Hawks in 2021
San Antonio Spurs
PositionBasketball Operations Representative
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (1990-01-18) January 18, 1990 (age 34)
Kébémer, Senegal
Listed height6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight248 lb (112 kg)
Career information
High school
CollegeLouisville (2010–2013)
NBA draft2013: 1st round, 21st overall pick
Selected by the Utah Jazz
Playing career2013–2023
PositionCenter
Number5, 14, 7, 10, 41
Career history
2013–2020Minnesota Timberwolves
2020–2021Memphis Grizzlies
2021San Antonio Spurs
2021–2022Atlanta Hawks
2022–2023San Antonio Spurs
Career highlights and awards
*Later vacated
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Senegal
AfroBasket
Bronze medal – third place 2017 Tunisia/Senegal
Bronze medal – third place 2021 Rwanda

Gorgui Sy Dieng (/ˈɡɔːrɡi ˈdʒɛŋ/; GOR-ghee JENG; born January 18, 1990)[1] is a Senegalese former professional basketball player currently working as a basketball operations representative with the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Louisville Cardinals.

Dieng was selected as the 21st overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz and was traded on draft night to the Minnesota Timberwolves. He spent seven seasons with the team before being dealt to the Memphis Grizzlies in February 2020. He reached a contract buyout agreement with the Grizzlies in March 2021 and joined the San Antonio Spurs in free agency. He signed with the Hawks in August 2021. In July 2022, he returned to the Spurs. On December 9, 2023, Dieng retired from basketball.

High school career

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Dieng attended the Sports for Education and Economic Development (SEEDS) Academy in Thiès, Senegal.[2] While at SEEDS, Dieng had a 3.2 GPA.[3] Dieng played in the national Nationale 1 league with US Rail, and helped the team win the Senegalese Cup in 2009, scoring 19 points in the final and being named final MVP.[4]

He was invited to the Basketball Without Borders camp in South Africa in 2009 as one of 60 promising players selected from across Africa, and was named MVP of the camp.[5][6]

Dieng transferred to Huntington Prep in West Virginia for the 2009–10 school year, where he played for coach Rob Fulford. He averaged 15.4 points, 12.6 rebounds and 7.2 blocks per game during his senior season at Huntington Prep.[7]

Recruiting

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Dieng was recruited by Marquette, Marshall, Colorado, and Louisville among others who came in late. His high school coach Rob Fulford said "Academics are no question, He passed the SAT six months after learning English and passed with 400 points to spare."[3] The most interest was from Louisville and Marshall. Then on March 30, 2010, head coach Donnie Jones left Marshall to become the head coach of the University of Central Florida. The next day, Rick Pitino signed a contract extension through 2017 with Louisville. On April 26, 2010, Dieng verbally committed to Louisville. Louisville assistant coach Walter McCarty, who has NBA experience, helped Rick Pitino land Dieng in a Cardinals uniform.[3]

Considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Dieng was listed as the No. 10 power forward and the No. 44 player in the nation in 2010.[8]

College career

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Dieng in 2013 with Louisville

Dieng was ruled ineligible by the NCAA when he first arrived at Louisville forcing them to hold him out of practice and individual workouts.[9] Louisville appealed the NCAA's decision and on October 26, 2010, it was announced that the NCAA reversed its original decision and ruled Dieng eligible immediately.[10] As a freshman Dieng saw action in 29 games averaging 16 mins a game. He scored 5.7 points a game, pulled down 4.4 rebounds and blocked 1.9 shots a game in his limited action.[11] The Cardinals finished the 2010–11 season with a 25–10 record, 12–6 in Big East play tied for 3rd and lost in the championship game of the 2011 Big East men's basketball tournament to Connecticut. They received an at-large bid and a #4 seed in the 2011 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament where they were upset in the second round by #13 seeded Morehead State.[12]

As a sophomore, Dieng started at center for the 2011–12 Louisville team that reached the Final Four of the NCAA tournament. In the 2011–12 season, Dieng led the Big East Conference in blocks, and set the all-time school record for blocks in a season.[13] On March 22, 2012, Dieng matched a Louisville tournament record with 7 blocks in a game in a 57–44 Sweet 16 victory over Michigan State.[14]

Dieng was named as a student representative to the board of directors of the U of L athletic department for the 2012–13 school year, succeeding his graduated teammate Kyle Kuric.[15]

Despite being a junior, Dieng was honored on Senior Day in 2013, due to the fact that he would forgo his last year at Louisville to enter the 2013 NBA draft.[16]

College awards and honors

[edit]

Professional career

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Minnesota Timberwolves (2013–2020)

[edit]
Dieng with the Timberwolves in 2019

On June 27, 2013, Dieng was selected by the Utah Jazz with the 21st overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft, and then traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves along with Shabazz Muhammad the 14th pick later that night in exchange for the 9th pick Trey Burke.[17] On March 20, 2014, in a game against the Houston Rockets, Dieng recorded 22 points and 21 rebounds, the first ever 20–20 game by a rookie in Timberwolves' franchise history. He also became just the sixth player since the NBA began tracking starts in 1970 to have at least 20 points and 20 rebounds within their first three career starts.[18] On April 11, also against the Rockets, Dieng scored the game-winning basket with 4.6 seconds left and finished with 12 points and 20 rebounds.[19] As a result of his improvements throughout the second half of the season, Dieng was named to the NBA All-Rookie second team.

On January 12, 2015, Dieng tied his career high of 22 points in a loss to the Denver Nuggets.[20] On January 28, he was named a representative of Team World to compete in the 2015 Rising Stars Challenge.[21]

On August 1, 2015, Dieng played for Team Africa at the 2015 NBA Africa exhibition game.[22]

On December 20, 2015, Dieng had a then season-best game with 20 points and 10 rebounds in a 100–85 win over the Brooklyn Nets.[23] On February 6, 2016, he recorded a career-high 24 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists in a 112–105 win over the Chicago Bulls.[24]

On October 31, 2016, Dieng signed a four-year, $64 million contract extension with the Timberwolves.[25][26] On January 15, 2017, he scored a season-high 21 points in a 98–87 loss to the Dallas Mavericks.[27] On March 30, 2017, he recorded 11 points, a season-high 15 rebounds, six assists and three blocks in a 119–104 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.[28]

Memphis Grizzlies (2020–2021)

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On February 6, 2020, Dieng was acquired by the Memphis Grizzlies in a three-team trade also involving the Miami Heat.[29] The Grizzlies also acquired Justise Winslow and Dion Waiters who was later waived. The Heat acquired Andre Iguodala, Solomon Hill and Jae Crowder while the Timberwolves acquired James Johnson.

On March 26, 2021, Dieng and the Grizzlies reached a contract buyout agreement.[30]

San Antonio Spurs (2021)

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On March 29, 2021, Dieng signed with the San Antonio Spurs.[31] He averaged 5.3 PPG, 2.6 RPG, and 1.2 APG in 16 games played off the bench with the Spurs.[32]

Atlanta Hawks (2021–2022)

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On August 9, 2021, Dieng signed a 1-year, $4 million contract with the Atlanta Hawks.[33][34]

Return to San Antonio (2022–2023)

[edit]

On July 5, 2022, Dieng signed a contract to return to the San Antonio Spurs.[35] On January 5, 2023, he was waived by the Spurs.[36] Three days later, he signed a 10-day contract with the Spurs.[37] On January 20, he signed a second 10-day contract with San Antonio.[38] On February 10, Dieng re-signed with the Spurs for the remainder of the season.[39]

On December 9, 2023, Dieng revealed in an interview with the San Antonio Express-News that he had officially retired from professional basketball.[40][41]

Career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
 *  Led the league

NBA

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Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2013–14 Minnesota 60 15 13.6 .498 1.000 .634 5.0 .7 .5 .8 4.8
2014–15 Minnesota 73 49 30.0 .506 .167 .783 8.3 2.0 1.0 1.7 9.7
2015–16 Minnesota 82* 39 27.1 .532 .300 .827 7.1 1.7 1.1 1.2 10.1
2016–17 Minnesota 82* 82* 32.4 .502 .372 .814 7.9 1.9 1.1 1.2 10.0
2017–18 Minnesota 79 0 16.9 .479 .311 .775 4.6 .9 .6 .5 5.9
2018–19 Minnesota 76 2 13.6 .501 .339 .830 4.1 .9 .6 .5 6.4
2019–20 Minnesota 46 17 16.9 .448 .383 .797 5.6 1.3 .8 .9 7.4
2019–20 Memphis 17 0 18.7 .483 .250 .738 5.8 .9 .8 1.0 7.2
2020–21 Memphis 22 1 16.9 .519 .479 .884 4.5 1.3 .8 .6 7.9
2020–21 San Antonio 16 0 11.3 .527 .318 .833 2.6 1.2 .6 .1 5.3
2021–22 Atlanta 44 3 8.4 .473 .426 .731 2.8 .8 .3 .3 3.5
2022–23 San Antonio 31 1 11.5 .385 .280 .769 3.5 1.7 .1 .5 3.9
Career 628 209 20.9 .496 .355 .791 5.6 1.3 .7 .9 7.3

Play-in

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2020 Memphis 1 0 13.9 .500 – – 4.0 .0 .0 2.0 2.0
2021 San Antonio 1 0 13.0 .667 1.000 1.000 4.0 1.0 .0 .0 6.0
2022 Atlanta 2 0 3.7 .333 .333 – .0 .5 .0 .5 1.5
Career 4 0 8.6 .500 .500 1.000 2.0 .5 .0 .8 2.8

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2018 Minnesota 5 0 14.0 .333 .400 .750 3.6 .8 .4 .8 3.4
2022 Atlanta 2 0 5.0 .500 .000 1.000 1.5 .0 .0 .0 1.5
Career 7 0 11.4 .350 .333 .800 3.0 .6 .3 .6 2.9

College

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2010–11 Louisville 29 9 15.6 .618 .000 .538 4.4 .7 .4 1.9 5.7
2011–12 Louisville 40 40 32.8 .525 .500 .676 9.1 1.1 1.2 3.2 9.1
2012–13 Louisville 33 32 31.1 .534 — .652 9.4 2.0 1.3 2.5 9.8
Career 102 81 27.3 .545 .333 .640 7.9 1.2 1.0 2.6 8.3

International career

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Dieng represented the Senegalese national basketball team during the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup where he averaged 16.0 points and 10.7 rebounds in six games.[42] He also played at the AfroBasket tournaments in 2015, 2017 and 2021, making the All-Tournament Team in all three years.

Post-playing career

[edit]

On December 9, 2023, Dieng announced his retirement from professional basketball and was named Basketball Operations Representative by the San Antonio Spurs.[41]

Personal life

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Dieng is known for his philanthropic work. He set up the Gorgui Dieng Foundation in 2015, which has provided aid including medical equipment and supplies to improve healthcare in his native Senegal.[43] In 2019 he became the third player to receive the Offseason NBA Cares Community Assist Award.[44] Dieng is a practicing Muslim.[45]

Gorgui means "the old one" in Dieng's native language Wolof.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "2011–12 Louisville Cardinals media guide" (PDF). CSTV.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
  2. ^ "Alumni- SEEDS". SEEDProjecy.org. Archived from the original on November 2, 2013. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
  3. ^ a b c Taylor, Grant (April 27, 2010). "Huntington Prep's Dieng commits to Louisville". herald-dispatch.com. Archived from the original on January 25, 2013. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
  4. ^ "Basket : la coupe du Sénégal emprunte les Rails". Au Sénégal, le cœur du Sénégal (in French). June 11, 2024. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
  5. ^ "BWB Africa 2009." Archived May 18, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, FIBA. Retrieved on May 4, 2015.
  6. ^ "NCAA Tournament in Phoenix: 'Throwback' Gorgui Dieng hits potential at a perfect time for Louisville". AZCentral.com. March 22, 2012. Retrieved March 22, 2012.
  7. ^ "Gorgui Dieng Profile". University of Louisville athletics. Archived from the original on June 16, 2012. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
  8. ^ "Gorgui Dieng Recruiting Profile". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
  9. ^ "Louisville freshman Gorgui Dieng ruled ineligible". usatoday.com. October 5, 2010. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
  10. ^ Brown, C.L. (October 26, 2010). "Louisville's Gorgui Dieng ruled eligible by NCAA after appeal". courier-journal.com. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
  11. ^ "Gorgui Dieng Stats | College Basketball at". Sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on April 21, 2013. Retrieved April 9, 2013.
  12. ^ "2010–11 Louisville Cardinals Schedule and Results | College Basketball at". Sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013. Retrieved April 9, 2013.
  13. ^ "Louisville-Marquette game recap". ESPN. March 9, 2012. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2012.
  14. ^ "Behanan scores 15, Dieng blocks 7 shots in Louisville's 57–44 win over Michigan State in West". Washington Post.[dead link‍]
  15. ^ Crawford, Eric (June 5, 2012). "$71.5 million U of L athletic budget". WDRB. Archived from the original on February 9, 2013. Retrieved June 5, 2012.
  16. ^ Brown, C.L. (March 6, 2013). "Pitino wants junior to get his senior moment". USA Today. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  17. ^ "Report: Wolves trade Burke to Jazz for 2 picks". NBA.com. June 27, 2013. Archived from the original on July 1, 2013. Retrieved October 31, 2016.
  18. ^ "Harden leads Rockets over Timberwolves 129-106". NBA.com. March 20, 2014. Archived from the original on March 31, 2014. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
  19. ^ "Notebook: Wolves 112, Rockets 110". NBA.com. April 11, 2014. Archived from the original on April 12, 2014. Retrieved April 11, 2014.
  20. ^ "Afflalo, Nuggets hand Wolves 12th straight loss". NBA.com. January 5, 2015. Retrieved January 5, 2015.
  21. ^ "Dieng, LaVine, Muhammad and Wiggins to Represent Wolves in 2015 BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge". NBA.com. January 28, 2015. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
  22. ^ "NBA stars, legends shine as Team World rallies to beat Team Africa". ESPN. August 1, 2015. Retrieved August 1, 2015.
  23. ^ "Towns has 24 points, 10 rebounds as Wolves win in Brooklyn". NBA.com. December 20, 2015. Archived from the original on December 21, 2015. Retrieved December 20, 2015.
  24. ^ "Timberwolves close out Bulls with 12-0 run to win 112-105". NBA.com. February 6, 2016. Archived from the original on March 3, 2018. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
  25. ^ "TIMBERWOLVES SIGN GORGUI DIENG TO CONTRACT EXTENSION". NBA.com. October 31, 2016. Retrieved October 31, 2016.
  26. ^ Charania, Shams (October 31, 2016). "Sources: Gorgui Dieng finalizing $64M extension with Minnesota". Yahoo.com. Retrieved October 31, 2016.
  27. ^ "Dieng scores season high, but Wolves lose in Dallas". FoxSports.com. January 15, 2017. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
  28. ^ "Rubio scores career-high 33 as Wolves beat Lakers 119-104". ESPN.com. March 30, 2017. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
  29. ^ "Memphis Grizzlies acquire Justise Winslow, Gorgui Dieng and Dion Waiters in three-team trade with Miami Heat and Minnesota Timberwolves". NBA.com. February 6, 2020. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  30. ^ "Memphis Grizzlies waive Gorgui Dieng". NBA.com. March 26, 2021. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  31. ^ "Spurs sign Gorgui Dieng". NBA.com. March 29, 2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  32. ^ "Gorgui Dieng stats". NBA.com. August 3, 2021. Retrieved August 3, 2021.
  33. ^ "Atlanta Hawks Sign Gorgui Dieng". NBA.com. August 9, 2021.
  34. ^ "Gorgui Dieng, Hawks Reportedly Agree to 1-Year, $4M Contract in Free Agency". Bleacher Report. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
  35. ^ Siegel, Brett (July 5, 2022). "San Antonio Spurs Sign Veteran Center Gorgui Dieng". SI.com. Retrieved July 5, 2022.
  36. ^ "Celtics trade Noah Vonleh, cash to Spurs". NBA.com. January 5, 2023. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  37. ^ "Spurs' Gorgui Dieng: Inks 10-day deal". CBSSports.com. January 8, 2023. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  38. ^ "Spurs' Gorgui Dieng: Lands another 10-day contract". CBSSports.com. January 20, 2023. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  39. ^ "SPURS SIGN GORGUI DIENG". NBA.com. February 10, 2023. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  40. ^ Stinar, Ben (December 9, 2023). "10-Year NBA Veteran Is Officially Retired". Fastbreak on FanNation. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  41. ^ a b McDonald, Jeff (December 9, 2023). "On Spurs' staff, Gorgui Dieng learning there is more to NBA life than getting buckets". ExpressNews.com. San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
  42. ^ "2014 FIBA Basketball Cup – Gorgui Dieng". FIBA.com. Archived from the original on July 9, 2018. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  43. ^ Ben Morse; Celine Ramseyer. "NBA celebrates Gorgui Dieng's charity work in native Senegal". CNN. Retrieved February 10, 2020.
  44. ^ "MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES' GORGUI DIENG RECEIVES OFFSEASON NBA CARES COMMUNITY ASSIST AWARD PRESENTED BY KAISER PERMANENTE". NBA Community Assist. November 8, 2019. Retrieved February 10, 2020.
  45. ^ Atkins, Hunter (April 20, 2018). "Gorgui Dieng: Minnesota's center of peace". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
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