Georges Niang
Georges Niang | |
|---|---|
| Born | Georges Maguette Niang June 17, 1993 United States |
| Occupation | Professional basketball player |
| Years active | 2016–present |
| Known for | NBA player for Utah Jazz |
Georges Maguette Niang ( ; born June 17, 1993), commonly known by the nickname "The Minivan", is a professional basketball athlete from the United States currently playing for the Utah Jazz in the National Basketball Association (NBA). During his collegiate career, he earned All-American honors while representing the Iowa State Cyclones.
Early life
Niang is the son of Sidy and Alison Niang, with his father having origins in Senegal. During his time at Tilton Prep, he was elected as the student body president.
High school career
As a three-year starter and captain for two years, Niang established himself as one of the most outstanding players in Tilton School history by setting a school record with 2,372 points scored. He was honored three times as a First-Team All-NEPSAC Class AA selection and was named the 2012 NEPSAC Class AA Player of the Year. In his senior year, he averaged 25.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game, guiding his team to victory in the 2011 NEPSAC Class AA championship where he earned outstanding player honors after scoring 23 points on flawless shooting in the final match. Additionally, his squad finished second in the 2011 National Prep Championship with Niang contributing 31 points.
Niang competed for Boston’s BABC AAU team, capturing the title at the 2011 Nike Peach Jam, one of the top AAU tournaments. His teammates included future NBA players such as Will Blalock and Nerlens Noel. Together, they secured four NEPSAC championships, a national prep championship, an AAU national title, and a Nike EYBL championship.
Ranked among the top-100 recruits on the East Coast by prominent scouting organizations, Niang was placed No. 42 by Lindy's, No. 56 by ESPNU, No. 69 by both Scout.com and Rivals.com, No. 73 by The Sporting News, and No. 81 by CBS Sports. He received scholarship offers from schools including Iowa, Providence, Texas A&M, and Seton Hall, ultimately committing to Iowa State.
College career
Niang was selected for the Big 12 All-Rookie Team in 2013. During the second round of the 2014 NCAA tournament, he sustained a fracture to the fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot, which caused him to miss the remainder of the tournament. In his sophomore season, he averaged 16.7 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, ranking as Iowa State’s third-leading offensive contributor behind teammates Melvin Ejim and DeAndre Kane.
In preparation for his junior year during the 2014 offseason, Niang successfully reduced his body weight from to by adjusting his caloric intake. That season, he led Iowa State with averages of 15.3 points, along with 5.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. Despite his efforts, the Cyclones were upset by No. 14 seed UAB in the first round of the 2015 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. Niang contemplated declaring for the 2015 NBA draft but opted to return for his senior year to enhance his collegiate legacy.
In his final season, Niang surpassed the milestone of 2,000 career points while averaging 20.2 points and 6.2 rebounds per contest. On February 11, he was included on the midseason watchlist of 35 candidates for the prestigious Naismith College Player of the Year award.
Throughout his tenure at Iowa State, Niang set several program records: he became the first player to participate in four consecutive NCAA tournaments; was recognized as their first two-time All-American; and holds records for most career games played (138) as well as most wins (98).
Indiana Pacers (2016–2017)
Niang was chosen by the Indiana Pacers as the 50th overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft on June 23, 2016. He participated in the 2016 NBA Summer League with the Pacers, receiving commendations from Larry Bird. Niang officially signed with Indiana on July 11, 2016. Throughout his rookie year, he was assigned multiple times to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA Development League. The Pacers waived him on July 14, 2017.
Santa Cruz Warriors (2017–2018)
Niang inked an Exhibit 10 deal with the Golden State Warriors on August 16, 2017, but was released on October 14, 2017. Subsequently, he joined their G League affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors, as an affiliate player.
Utah Jazz (2018–2021)
On January 14, 2018, Niang signed a two-way contract with the Utah Jazz, taking over a roster spot formerly held by his ex-college teammate Naz Mitrou-Long. He divided his time between Utah and their G League team, the Salt Lake City Stars. By July 13, 2018, Niang secured a full NBA contract with the Jazz. He achieved personal best scoring marks of 24 points in games against the Los Angeles Clippers on April 10, 2019, and versus the Houston Rockets on May 8, 2021.
Philadelphia 76ers (2021–2023)
Niang agreed to a two-year contract worth $6.7 million with the Philadelphia 76ers on August 9, 2021. He maintained his "Minivan" nickname from his time in Utah. During his tenure with Philadelphia, Niang assumed his most significant role yet as a backup to forward Tobias Harris, boosting his scoring production. His highest scoring output for the Sixers came on April 7, 2023, when he tallied 24 points in a 136-131 overtime victory over the Atlanta Hawks, shooting an efficient 5-of-7 from beyond the arc.
Cleveland Cavaliers (2023–2025)
Niang joined the Cleveland Cavaliers by signing on July 6, 2023. On January 17, 2024, he set a new personal scoring record with 33 points against the Milwaukee Bucks, converting an impressive 13 of 14 field goal attempts. Throughout the 2023-24 NBA season, Niang appeared in all 82 games and averaged 9.4 points per contest.
Atlanta Hawks (2025)
On February 6, 2025, Niang was traded to the Atlanta Hawks along with Caris LeVert, three second-round draft picks, and two pick swaps in exchange for De'Andre Hunter.
Return to Utah (2025–present)
In a three-team trade completed on July 7, 2025, Niang and a future second-round pick were sent to the Boston Celtics. This deal also involved sending Kristaps Porziņģis and a second-round pick to Atlanta and moving Terance Mann plus draft rights to Drake Powell (the 22nd pick in the 2025 NBA draft) to the Brooklyn Nets. Prior to playing any games for Boston, Niang was traded back to the Utah Jazz on August 6 in exchange for two future second-round selections and an $8 million trade exception along with RJ Luis Jr. Niang is highly regarded in Utah for his leadership qualities within the locker room and is anticipated to have a positive impact on developing players.
Regular season
|- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Indiana | 23 || 0 || 4.0 || .250 || .083 || 1.000 || .7 || .2 || .1 || .0 || .9 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Utah | 9 || 0 || 3.5 || .364 || .000 || .500 || 1.0 || .3 || .2 || .0 || 1.0 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Utah | 59 || 0 || 8.8 || .475 || .410 || .833 || 1.5 || .6 || .2 || .1 || 4.0 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Utah | 66 || 1 || 14.0 || .438 || .400 || .833 || 1.9 || .7 || .3 || .1 || 5.9 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Utah | 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 |76||7||22.8||.437||.403||.881||2.7||1.3||.4|| .2||9.2 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia |78||1||19.4||.442||.401||.867||2.4||1.0|||.4|||.2|||8.2 |- | style="text-align:left;" | | style="text-align:left;" | Cleveland | 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;" | Cleveland |51||1||20.7||.477||.400||.793||.3.7||1.3||.3||.1||8.7
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | Atlanta |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
|- | style="text-align:left;"| 2019 | style="text-align:left;"| Utah | 5 || 0 || 11.0 || .409 || .308 || || 2.8 || 1.0 || .2 || .2 || 4.4 |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2020 | style="text-align:left;"| Utah | 7 || 0 || 16.3 || .500 || .414 || 1.000 || 2.1 || .6 || .0 || .1 || 8.3 |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2021 | style="text-align:left;"| Utah | 11 || 0 || 11.7 || .282 || .300 || 1.000 || 1.7 || .7 || .0 || .1 || 3.2 |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2022 | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia | 12 || 0 || 16.5 || .417 || .372 || 1.000 || 1.5 || .9 || .3 || .0 || 4.8 |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2023 | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia | 11 || 0 || 14.3 || .500 || .462 || || .4 || .2 || .0 || .2 || 4.4 |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2024 | style="text-align:left;"| Cleveland | 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
|- | style="text-align:left;" | 2012–13
| style="text-align:left;" | Iowa State | 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;" | Iowa State |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;" | Iowa State |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;" | Iowa State |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