The purpose of the G-League draft is to give opportunities to players who have signed on to play in the G-League but are not designated with a specific team. Saturday, October 26th, was the NBA G-League Draft. The Westchester Knicks had the first two picks of the first round, to which they selected Matt Ryan and Landry Shamet, number one and two overall.
The Austin Spurs also made impactful selections in the first round as they drafted 7-foot Ibrahima Diallo out of UCF (13) and 6 ’7” Steven Richardson (28) out of Montana State University Billings.
There were two additional picks for the Austin Spurs in the second round as they drafted Xavier Johnson (33), and Charles Pride (39) Johnson was traded to the Memphis Hustle for a 2025 second-round pick via (RGV), and Pride was acquired by the Raptors 905 in exchange for a 2025 NBA G League International Draft pick.
Ibrahima Diallo and Steven Richardson have the opportunity to carve out pivotal roles for the Austin Spurs, as we introduce a brand new series titled, “The
Breakdown.”Ibrahima Diallo (7-0 246 lbs)
Diallo hails from Saly, Senegal, and moved to the United States at 16 years where he played for Prolific Prep in Napa Valley, Calif. Before entering the NBA G-League, Ibrahima attended the University Of Central Florida for his fifth and final year of college, where he earned Big 12 Honorable Mention. Diallo led the Big-12 Conference in blocks per contest, and averaged 1.78 blocks per game; he was also 2 blocks shy of his career totaling 57 for the season. Ibrahima helped the UCF Knights defeat Oklahoma State in the first round of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship scoring 17 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.
Diallo initially attended Ohio State University from 2019-2021, where he played in a total of 13 games in his tenure. Before joining UCF, Ibrahima played for San Jose State, where he averaged 7.8 points and 7.2 boards per game in the 2020-21 season. In his final season with SJSU, Diallo started all 35 games while averaging 6.6 PPG and 6.0 RPG and was ranked 51st in the country in blocked shots.
Ibrahima Diallo is no stranger to the organization, however, as he played against the Pelicans, Sixers, and Raptors as a member of the San Antonio Spurs NBA 2K25 Summer League team, where he averaged 3.3 points and 6.3 rebounds through 3 games. Diallo will look to build on his momentum as he heads into his first full season with the Austin Spurs.
Steven Richardson (6-7 190 lbs)
Steven Richardson is a proud native of Sacramento, California, where he was an elite combo guard for Grant Union High School and would occasionally play the wing similar to that of San Antonio Spurs rookie Stephon Castle. He graduated from Grant Union in 2019 where Steven led the team to back-to-back CIF Division II Regional Semifinals appearances as an upperclassman. Richardson was also rated as a three-star recruit via ESPN and considered a top-40 prospect in the state of California.
In Richardson’s first season with Midland College, he made an appearance in 30 games, starting 27 of them, averaging 8.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, and 1.8 apg while accumulating 34 steals and 8 blocks for the season. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Midland College season was halted, and Steven started all 7 games averaging a career-best 36.1 minutes with statistical averages of 12.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg, and 1.7 apg. In his final season with Midland College, Stephon started 28 of 29 games, averaging 12 ppg, 3.1 rpg, and 2.2 apg.
It was after this season Steven decided to sign a letter of intent to play for the Montana State University Billings where he started in all 30 games he appeared, averaging 9.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg, and 1.3 apg en route to becoming a 2022-23 All-GNAC Honorable Mention totaling 34 steals for MSUB. Richardson took his biggest leap in the 2023-24 season for MSUB, where he averaged 7 ppg, 2.8 rpg, and 1.8 apg while collecting an impressive 55 steals becoming a two-time All-GNAC Honorable Mention and was the recipient of the GNAC Defensive Player Of The Year Award.
The offensive versatility of Steven Richardson, along with his defensive toughness, makes him a very intriguing selection for the Austin Spurs. Steven’s adaptability to play the guard and wing position provides him with unlimited opportunities to be a focal point of the Austin Spurs as they prepare for the new season. Steven's durability also makes him a benefactor whether starting or increased rotational minutes off the bench for newly hired Austin coach Scott King.
If Coach King decides to start Riley Minix, Harrison Ingram, Sidy Cissoko, Ibrahima Diallo, and Steven Richardson, this could potentially be one of the toughest defensive teams in the G League, and with a complimentary high-octane offense it's abundantly clear; the offense wins games, and defense wins championships philosophy could soon catapult the Austin Spurs to greatness.
“Now that is what you call, a teachable moment.” - Andre Chase.
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