DeSagana Diop

DeSagana Diop
Diop during a Cavaliers preseason game in October 2013
Utah Jazz
Position Coaching associate
League NBA
Personal information
Born (1982-01-30) January 30, 1982
Dakar, Senegal
Nationality Senegalese
Listed height 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
Listed weight 280 lb (127 kg)
Career information
High school Oak Hill Academy
(Mouth of Wilson, Virginia)
NBA draft 2001 / Round: 1 / Pick: 8th overall
Selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers
Playing career 2001–2013
Position Center
Number 52, 7, 14, 2
Coaching career 2014–present
Career history
As player:
2001–2005 Cleveland Cavaliers
2005–2008 Dallas Mavericks
2008 New Jersey Nets
2008–2009 Dallas Mavericks
2009–2013 Charlotte Bobcats
As coach:
2014–2016 Texas Legends (player development / assistant)
2016–present Utah Jazz (coaching associate)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

DeSagana N'gagne Diop (/səˈɡɑːnə ˈdʒɒp/ sə-GAH-nə JOP; born January 30, 1982) is a Senegalese former professional basketball player who is currently a coaching associate for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Early life

After he began practicing basketball at the age of 15, Diop succeeded in averaging 14.6 points, 13.2 rebounds, and 8.1 blocks during his senior high school season,[1] earning the USA Today Virginia Player of the Year title and leading Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Virginia, to a #1 nation ranking (33 wins, 0 losses).

Diop speaks five languages:[2] Arabic, English, French, Wolof and some Spanish.

Professional career

Diop was drafted directly out of Oak Hill Academy by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the 8th overall pick of the 2001 NBA draft.[3] He was the fifth high school player, after Kwame Brown, Tyson Chandler, Eddy Curry and Ousmane Cisse to declare for the draft.[1] He played 193 games in four seasons with the Cavaliers, as a rarely looked at backup, averaging 1.6 points, 2.6 rebounds and 0.8 blocks in 10.8 minutes per contest. Diop signed a three-year contract with the Dallas Mavericks as a free agent on August 19, 2005.[4] Diop quickly established himself as a defensive stalwart and potent shot blocker and rebounder, providing relief for Erick Dampier as a center. After December 31, 2005, he started most of the games for the Mavericks, assisting in their improvement and strong drive that resulted in the team qualifying to play in the NBA finals as representatives of the Western Conference.

Against the New York Knicks in a pre-season game, Diop hit the game-winning tip-in off of a missed shot by Keith Van Horn. Against the Denver Nuggets in November 2005, he registered 16 rebounds with a career-high 6 blocks—including a denial of Carmelo Anthony's potentially game-winning field goal attempt.[5]

Diop's defense was applauded around the league; for the 05–06 season, he ranked 11th in total blocks, 14th in blocks per game, and 4th in blocks per 48 minutes.[6][7][8] In Game 7 of the 2006 Western Conference Semifinals between San Antonio and Dallas, Diop was called the "unsung hero" of the game after grabbing two crucial offensive rebounds, disrupting a number of opponents' shots and playing very solid defense on Tim Duncan in the fourth quarter and overtime with a broken nose.[9]

In March 2006, two Mavericks fans produced a version of the hip-hop song "Jump" by Kris Kross. In their version, the refrain "Jump! Jump!" was turned into "Diop! Diop!", and the video praises Diop's shotblocking ability. It became so popular that the Mavs started to play the video at their home games. Diop said, "I remember the first time they played the video during a timeout and I was trying to pay attention to what coach [Johnson] was trying to say but I was sneaking looks at the video."[10]

On April 11, 2007, Diop recorded his first double-double with season highs of 10 points and 15 rebounds in the Mavs' franchise-high 30th road victory, a 105–88 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.[11]

On February 19, 2008, Diop was traded to the New Jersey Nets along with signed and traded Keith Van Horn, Devin Harris, Trenton Hassell, Maurice Ager, and roughly $3 million cash and 2008 and 2010 first round draft picks in exchange for Jason Kidd, Malik Allen and Antoine Wright.[12]

On July 9, 2008, Diop signed a six-year, $32 million contract with the Dallas Mavericks.[13]

On January 16, 2009, he was traded to the Charlotte Bobcats for guard Matt Carroll and center Ryan Hollins.[14]

On September 30, 2013, he signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers.[15] However, he was waived on October 25.[16]

Coaching career

On November 11, 2014, Diop joined the coaching staff of the Texas Legends of the NBA Development League as a player development coach.[17] On October 19, 2015, he was promoted to assistant coach.[18]

On October 3, 2016, Diop was hired by the Utah Jazz as a coaching associate.[19]

NBA career statistics

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

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2001–02 Cleveland 1816.1.414.000.200.9.3.1.61.4
2002–03 Cleveland 80111.8.351.000.3672.7.5.41.01.5
2003–04 Cleveland 56313.0.388.000.6003.6.6.5.92.3
2004–05 Cleveland 3907.8.290.000.0001.8.4.2.71.0
2005–06 Dallas 814518.6.487.500.5424.6.3.51.82.3
2006–07 Dallas 81918.3.470.000.5585.4.4.51.42.3
2007–08 Dallas 521817.2.583.000.6005.2.5.41.23.0
2007–08 New Jersey 27514.9.415.000.4674.5.5.2.92.5
2008–09 Dallas 34013.3.379.000.4143.5.4.4.71.6
2008–09 Charlotte 41114.2.460.000.2703.8.5.4.82.8
2009–10 Charlotte 2709.7.517.000.2222.4.2.2.51.2
2010–11 Charlotte 16011.3.333.000.3642.5.4.3.91.3
2011–12 Charlotte 27912.0.357.000.1673.1.9.2.51.1
2012–13 Charlotte 22110.3.296.000.0002.3.6.2.7.7
Career 6019314.0.427.167.4673.7.4.41.02.0

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2006 Dallas 221818.5.615.000.6115.0.1.61.32.7
2007 Dallas 6323.3.600.000.4296.8.3.51.73.5
Career 282119.5.611.000.5605.4.1.61.42.9

References

  1. 1 2 Diop declares for NBA draft
  2. ↑ Cavaliers: Cavalier DeSagana Diop Holds a Special Reading Timeout in French with St. Ignatius High School Students Archived 2008-03-12 at the Wayback Machine.
  3. ↑ "2001 NBA draft board". USA Today. July 2, 2001. Retrieved May 1, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Mavs Sign Diop". NBA.com. 2009-08-19. Archived from the original on August 22, 2007. Retrieved 2009-02-28.
  5. ↑ ESPN – Denver vs. Dallas Recap, November 15, 2005
  6. ↑ ESPN – NBA Statistics and League Leaders – National Basketball Association
  7. ↑ ESPN – NBA Statistics and League Leaders – National Basketball Association
  8. ↑ ESPN – NBA Statistics and League Leaders – National Basketball Association
  9. ↑ Mavs blow 20-point lead before eliminating Spurs in OT
  10. ↑ Archived May 13, 2006, at the Wayback Machine.
  11. ↑ Mavericks set franchise record with 30th road victory
  12. ↑ "Nets Acquire Harris". NBA.com. 2008-02-19. Retrieved 2009-07-20.
  13. ↑ "Diop back in the fold". NBA.com. 2008-07-09. Retrieved 2009-02-28.
  14. ↑ "Bobcats Acquire DeSagana Diop from Dallas Mavericks". NBA.com. 2009-01-16. Archived from the original on 2009-01-20. Retrieved 2009-01-16.
  15. ↑ Cavaliers Announce 2013-14 Training Camp Roster
  16. ↑ Cavs waive DeSagana Diop, Kenny Kadji, Jermaine Taylor, Elliot Williams
  17. ↑ "Nick Van Exel, DeSagana Diop Join Legends' Coaching Staff". CBSLocal.com. November 11, 2014. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
  18. ↑ "Legends Round out Coaches' Bench". OurSportsCentral.com. October 19, 2015. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
  19. ↑ "Jazz Announce Basketball Staff Addition". NBA.com. October 3, 2016. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
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