Georges Niang ( ; born June 17, 1993), nicknamed "The Minivan", 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

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

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 was an

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

college player for

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricult ...

Early life

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

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

. He was elected student body president at Tilton Prep.

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 Tilton School is an independent, coeducational, college-preparatory school in Tilton, New Hampshire, Tilton, New Hampshire, serving students from 9th to 12th grade and postgraduate year, postgraduate students. Founded in 1845, Tilton's student b ...

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 Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

-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 ant ...

and NBA player Will Blalock. 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 who last played for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His collegiate basketball career ended in his first season with a tear of his ant ...

, they won four NEPSAC titles, one national prep championship, one AAU national championship and one

Nike EYBL The Nike, Inc., Nike Elite Youth Basketball League, also known as Nike EYBL, or simply EYBL, is a basketball circuit for teams of players aged 17 and under. The circuit was founded in 2010 and is composed of Amateur Athletic Union, AAU travel team ...

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 Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and Hearst Communications (which owns the remain ...

, No. 69 by Scout.com, No. 69 by Rivals.com, No. 73 by

The Sporting News ''The Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a ...

, and No. 81 by

CBS Sports CBS Sports is the American sports programming division of Paramount Global that is responsible for sports broadcasts carried by its broadcast network CBS and streaming service Paramount+, as well as the operator of its cable channel CBS Sports N ...

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

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

, Providence,

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

and

Seton Hall Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizab ...

, 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, United States. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State be ...

College career

Niang was named to the

Big 12 The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. It consists of 16 full-member universities (3 private universities and 13 public universities) in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Okla ...

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 ...

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 prof ...

. Niang cut back on his calorie consumption in the 2014 offseason and consequently slimmed down to from . 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 The 2015 NBA draft was held on June 25, 2015, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. It was televised nationally in the U.S. by ESPN. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eli ...

, 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 "the most prestigious national award presented annually to the men's and women's college basketball players of the year," as chosen by the Atlanta Tipoff Club's Board of Selectors. It is named in honor o ...

on February 11. During his college career, Niang achieved a number of 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 Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

with the 50th overall pick in the

2016 NBA draft The 2016 NBA draft was held on June 23, 2016, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. It was televised nationally in the U.S. by ESPN, and was live streamed for the first time in NBA draft history by The Vertical. National Basketball Association (NBA) ...

. 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 Noblesville Boom are an American professional basketball team based in Noblesville, Indiana that competes in the NBA G League. The Boom are the affiliate team of the NBA's Indiana Pacers and, since 2025, they have played their home games at ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of the 2024–25 season, ...

. 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 Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

. 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 o ...

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 Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

to take up a spot previously held by former college teammate

Naz Mitrou-Long Nazareth Jersey Mitrou-Long (born August 3, 1993) is a Canadians, Canadian-Greeks, Greek professional basketball player for Olympiacos B.C., Olympiacos of the Greek Basket League and the EuroLeague. He played college basketball for the Iowa State ...

. 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 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 ...

affiliate, the

Salt Lake City Stars The Salt Lake City Stars are an American minor-league professional basketball team. They are a member of the NBA G League, based in the Salt Lake City suburb of West Valley City, Utah, and are affiliated with the Utah Jazz. Before the 2016–17 ...

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

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

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 of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

on May 8, 2021.

Philadelphia 76ers (2021–2023)

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

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, also known colloquially 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 Atlan ...

. With the team, he carried over the "Minivan" nickname he maintained in Utah. His time with the 76ers accounted for his most sizable role - backing up forward

Tobias Harris Tobias John Harris (born July 15, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played one season of college basketball for the Tennessee Volunteers before declaring ...

among others - and points per game to that point in his career. Niang had his highest scoring output as a Sixer on April 7, 2023, posting 24 points in a 136-131 overtime win over the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...

on 5-7 shooting from 3.

Cleveland Cavaliers (2023–2025)

On July 6, 2023, Niang signed with the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

. On January 17, 2024, Niang scored a new career high of 33 points against the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

, making 13 of his 14 shots attempts. In the 2023-24 NBA season Niang played 82 games, averaging 9.4 points per game.

Atlanta Hawks (2025)

On February 6, 2025, Niang, along with Caris LeVert, three second-round picks, and two pick swaps were traded to the

in exchange for

De'Andre Hunter De'Andre James Hunter (born December 2, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Virginia Cavaliers and was named the NABC D ...

Boston Celtics (2025–present)

On July 7, 2025, Niang and a future second-round pick were traded to the

in a three-team trade that sent

Kristaps Porziņģis Kristaps Porziņģis (; born 2 August 1995) is a Latvian professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "The Unicorn" for his ability to make plays and shoot 3-pointers as a Center ...

and a second-round pick to the Hawks, and

Terance Mann Terance Stanley Mann (born October 18, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Florida State Seminoles. Mann was drafted by the ...

and the draft rights to Drake Powell (the 22nd pick in 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 ...

) to the

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), ...

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

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

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

, 9 , , 0 , , 3.5 , , .364 , , .000 , , .500 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , .2 , , .0 , , 1.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 59 , , 0 , , 8.8 , , .475 , , .410 , , .833 , , 1.5 , , .6 , , .2 , , .1 , , 4.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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

, style="background:#cfecec;", 72* , , 10 , , 16.0 , , .437 , , .425 , , .957 , , 2.4 , , .8 , , .3 , , .1 , , 6.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, 76 , , 7 , , 22.8 , , .437 , , .403 , , .881 , , 2.7 , , 1.3 , , .4 , , .2 , , 9.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 78 , , 1 , , 19.4 , , .442 , , .401 , , .867 , , 2.4 , , 1.0 , , .4 , , .2 , , 8.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

, 82 , , 10 , , 22.3 , , .449 , , .376 , , .850 , , 3.4 , , 1.2 , , .4 , , .2 , , 9.4 , - , style="text-align:left;" rowspan=2, , style="text-align:left;",

, 51 , , 1 , , 20.7 , , .477 , , .400 , , .793 , , 3.7 , , 1.3 , , .3 , , .1 , , 8.7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, 28 , , 2 , , 23.0 , , .441 , , .413 , , .793 , , 3.0 , , 1.6 , , .4 , , .3 , , 12.1 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 544 , , 32 , , 17.5 , , .445 , , .399 , , .852 , , 2.5 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , .1 , , 7.4

Playoffs

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2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

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

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

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

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

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

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

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, 12 , , 0 , , 16.5 , , .417 , , .372 , , 1.000 , , 1.5 , , .9 , , .3 , , .0 , , 4.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

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

, 11 , , 0 , , 14.3 , , .500 , , .462 , , , , .4 , , .2 , , .0 , , .2 , , 4.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

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, 10 , , 0 , , 12.1 , , .220 , , .130 , , .875 , , 1.2 , , .4 , , .4 , , .2 , , 2.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 56 , , 0 , , 13.8 , , .387 , , .341 , , .938 , , 1.5 , , .6 , , .1 , , .1 , , 4.4

College

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2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

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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

References

External links

Iowa State Cyclones bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Niang, Georges 1993 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century Senegalese sportsmen All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players American people of Senegalese descent Atlanta Hawks players Basketball players from Essex County, Massachusetts Cleveland Cavaliers players Fort Wayne Mad Ants players Forwards (basketball) Indiana Pacers draft picks Indiana Pacers players Iowa State Cyclones men's basketball players NBA players from Senegal Philadelphia 76ers players Salt Lake City Stars players Santa Cruz Warriors players Senegalese men's basketball players Sportspeople from Lawrence, Massachusetts Sportspeople of Senegalese descent Tilton School alumni Utah Jazz players