Ibou Dianko Badji (born 13 October 2002) is a Senegalese professional basketball player for the Wisconsin Herd of the NBA G League.
No. 16 – Wisconsin Herd | |
---|---|
Position | Center |
League | NBA G League |
Personal information | |
Born | Dakar, Senegal | 13 October 2002
Listed height | 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) |
Listed weight | 240 lb (109 kg) |
Career information | |
High school | NBA Academy Africa (Saly, Senegal) |
NBA draft | 2022: undrafted |
Playing career | 2019–present |
Career history | |
2019–2021 | FC Barcelona B |
2021–2022 | Força Lleida CE |
2022–2023 | Wisconsin Herd |
2023–2024 | Portland Trail Blazers |
2023–2024 | →Rip City Remix |
2024–present | Wisconsin Herd |
Stats at NBA.com | |
Stats at Basketball Reference |
Early life and career
editIn 2017–18, Badji trained with NBA Academy Africa in Saly, Senegal, where he emerged as one of the best prospects in his age group.[1] By the time he turned 15 years old, he stood about 2.16 m (7 ft 1 in) with a 2.29 m (7 ft 6 in) wingspan.[2] On 27 December 2018, Badji signed with Spanish basketball club FC Barcelona and began playing for its youth sections.[3] In December 2019, he played for U18 FC Barcelona at ANGT Valencia, where he averaged eight points, 8.8 rebounds and five blocks per game.[4]
Professional career
editBarcelona (2019–2021)
editTo prepare for the 2019–20 season, Badji trained with the first team of Barcelona.[5] He spent much of the season playing for FC Barcelona B, the club's reserve team, in the third-tier LEB Plata. On 26 October 2019, Badji had a season-high 12 points, nine rebounds and five blocks in an 86–77 win over Prat.[6] On 18 January 2020, he recorded eight points and a season-high eight blocks in an 88–80 victory over Prat.[7]
Força Lleida (2021–2022)
editOn 4 October 2021, Badji signed with Força Lleida CE of the LEB Oro.[8]
Wisconsin Herd (2022–2023)
editAfter going undrafted in the 2022 NBA draft, on 3 November 2022, Badji was named to the opening night roster for the Wisconsin Herd after signing an Exhibition 10 contract.[9]
On 18 November 2022, the Portland Trail Blazers announced that they had signed Badji to a two-way contract.[10] On 7 March 2023, he underwent surgery on his left knee and was ruled out for at least eight weeks, thus missing out on playing the rest of the season.[11]
On 6 July 2023, Badji signed another two-way contract with the Trail Blazers,[12] but was waived on 24 October.[13] Six days later, he returned to the Herd.[14][15]
Portland Trail Blazers (2023–2024)
editOn 22 November 2023, Badji signed another two-way contract with the Portland Trail Blazers.[16] On 26 December 2023, Badji made his NBA debut for the Trail Blazers in a 130–113 win over the Sacramento Kings[17] and two days later, he put up 7 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 blocks in 14 minutes of action in a 118–105 loss to the San Antonio Spurs.[18]
Return to Wisconsin (2024–present)
editOn 12 September 2024, Badji signed with the Milwaukee Bucks, but was waived the same day.[19] On 28 October, he rejoined the Wisconsin Herd.[20]
National team career
editBadji represented Senegal at the 2019 FIBA Under-19 Basketball World Cup in Heraklion, Greece. He averaged 6.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game, which ranked second in the tournament, as his team finished in 15th place.[21]
Career statistics
editGP | 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 |
NBA
editRegular season
editYear | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2023–24 | Portland | 22 | 1 | 10.3 | .636 | — | .500 | 2.3 | .6 | .1 | .9 | 1.5 |
Career | 22 | 1 | 10.3 | .636 | — | .500 | 2.3 | .6 | .1 | .9 | 1.5 |
References
edit- ^ "El Barça ficha al 'rey del mate' senegalés de 16 años y 2,18". Sport (in Spanish). 27 December 2018. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
- ^ Givony, Jonathan (28 December 2017). "Inside the NBA Academy and what it means for future prospects". ESPN. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
- ^ "El Barcelona ata al 'anti-Tavares' del futuro forjado por la NBA: 16 años y 2,16 metros". Marca (in Spanish). 28 December 2018. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
- ^ Domínguez, Juan (27 December 2019). "Primera jornada del ANGT de Valencia: Roko Prkacin, Alonso Faure…". Fullbasket (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 March 2020.
- ^ "Fc Barcelone : Le jeune Ibou Badji avec l'équipe première". Le Quotidien (in French). 29 August 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
- ^ "Espagne – LEB Plata : Brancou Badio et Ibou Badji décisifs avec le Barça". Basketsenegal (in French). 28 October 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
- ^ "8 tapones con el filial del Barça para Ibou Badji: te lo presentamos". Gigantes del Basket (in Spanish). 18 January 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
- ^ "Ibou Badji joins Lleida". Eurobasket. 5 October 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
- ^ "Wisconsin Herd Announces 2022-23 Opening Day Roster". oursportscentral.com. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ "Portland Trail Blazers Sign Ibou Badji to Two-Way Contract". NBA.com. 18 November 2022. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
- ^ "IBOU BADJI INJURY UPDATE". NBA.com. 7 March 2023. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
- ^ "Trail Blazers Re-Sign Ibou Badji And John Butler Jr. To Two-Way Contracts". NBA.com. 6 July 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
- ^ "Trail Blazers Sign Duop Reath to Two-Way Contract". NBA.com. 24 October 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
- ^ "WISCONSIN HERD ANNOUNCE 2023 TRAINING CAMP ROSTER". NBA.com. 30 October 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
- ^ Owczarski, Jim (30 October 2023). "Drew Timme, Alex Antetokounmpo, Glenn Robinson III headline the Wisconsin Herd camp roster". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
- ^ "Trail Blazers Re-Sign Ibou Badji To Two-Way Contract". NBA.com. 22 November 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ^ "Sacramento Kings vs Portland Trail Blazers - Box Score". ESPN.com. 26 December 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
- ^ "San Antonio Spurs vs Portland Trail Blazers - Box Score". ESPN.com. 28 December 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
- ^ Adams, Luke (13 September 2024). "Bucks Sign, Waive Ibou Badji". HoopsRumors.com. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
- ^ "WISCONSIN HERD ANNOUNCES 2024-25 TRAINING CAMP ROSTER". NBA.com. 28 October 2024. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
- ^ "Five players who blossomed at U19 World Cup". FIBA. 12 July 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2020.