Sasha "Dink" Pate (born March 10, 2006) is an 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 (appro ...

player for the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

of the

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

(NBA). He became the youngest professional basketball player in U.S. history after joining the

NBA G League Ignite The NBA G League Ignite was a developmental basketball team in the NBA G League. Originally based in Walnut Creek, California, with home games planned to have been played at the Ultimate Fieldhouse for their first two seasons before moving to Hende ...

Early life and high school career

A native of

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, Pate played primarily

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...

L. G. Pinkston High School L.G. Pinkston High School is a Public school (government funded), public secondary school in West Dallas, West Dallas, Texas, Dallas, Texas (United States, USA). L.G. Pinkston High School enrolls students in grades 7-12 and is a part of the Da ...

West Dallas West Dallas is an area consisting of many communities and neighborhoods in Dallas, Texas, Dallas, Texas, United States. West Dallas lies just west of Downtown Dallas, north of Oak Cliff, and east of Irving, Texas, Irving and Grand Prairie, Texas, ...

. In his last season, he averaged 20.3 points and was the named the 2022–2023 District 13-4A Most Valuable Player. He was also named to the 2022–2023 University Interscholastic League Boys 4A All-Region Team and All-State Team. Wanting to focus full time on basketball, Pate graduated from Pinkston a year early and continued his education by enrolling in online classes created by the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

Arizona State Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in Tempe, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 as Territorial Normal School by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, the university is one of the largest ...

Recruiting

Rated as a five-star prospect by

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

, Pate announced he would forgo playing college basketball and instead play professionally for

after reclassifying to the 2023 class. He would have enrolled at

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

had he not have joined Ignite.

Professional career

NBA G League Ignite (2023–2024)

On April 17, 2023, Pate signed a two-year contract with the

. By joining Ignite, he became the youngest known professional basketball player in U.S. history, surpassing Scoot Henderson by five weeks. On February 27, 2024, Pate scored a career-high 16 points along with 9 assists against the

Texas Legends The Texas Legends are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Frisco, Texas, and are affiliated with the Dallas Mavericks. The Legends play their home games at the Comerica Center. The team began as the Colorado 14 ...

. After the shutting down of the NBA G League Ignite on March 28, 2024, Pate was suggested to have had a waiver request to enter the

2024 NBA draft The 2024 NBA draft was the 78th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual NBA draft, draft. Unlike recent years, the 2024 draft took place over two nights. This was the first NBA draft to be held on multiple nights since the draft ...

due to the team's closure and having turned 18 during the season, but he was denied entry to the draft that year.

Mexico City Capitanes (2024–2025)

On July 3, 2024, Pate signed with the

Mexico City Capitanes The Mexico City Capitanes () are a Mexican professional basketball team based in Mexico City. The Capitanes competed as a member club in the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional (LNBP) for its first three seasons and the franchise is currently ...

New York Knicks (2025–present)

Pate entered the

2025 NBA draft The 2025 NBA draft was the 79th edition of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) annual draft. Like the 2024 draft, this draft took place over two nights. The draft consisted of 59 picks as opposed to the full 60 due to the New York Knick ...

, but went undrafted and signed with the

on June 27, 2025.

Career statistics

NBA G League

, - !scope="row" style="text-align:left;", 2023–24 , style="text-align:left;",

G League Ignite The NBA G League Ignite was a developmental basketball team in the NBA G League. Originally based in Walnut Creek, California, with home games planned to have been played at the Ultimate Fieldhouse for their first two seasons before moving to Hende ...

, 31 , , 20 , , 23.6 , , .347 , , .214 , , .727 , , 2.9 , , 3.8 , , .6 , , .1 , , 8.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 31 , , 20 , , 23.6 , , .347 , , .214 , , .727 , , 2.9 , , 3.8 , , .6 , , .1 , , 8.0

References

External links

NBA G League profileRealGM profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pate, Dink 2006 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen American expatriate basketball people in Mexico American men's basketball players Basketball players from Dallas Mexico City Capitanes players NBA G League Ignite players Shooting guards