Keita Bates-Diop

Keita Bates-Diop is a professional NBA player who is recently playing for the San Antonio Spurs as a small forward. Bates-Diop was born and raised in Sacramento, California with an anthropologist father. When they have transferred to Normal, Illinois, he attended University High School, where he recorded 18.4 points with 6.7 rebounds. At the same time, he was considered in the Top 5 candidates for their state Mr. Basketball.

Early Life Before NBA

When he stepped into college, he committed to play for the Ohio State University, where he started being a bench player during his freshman year. During his sophomore year, he was becoming helpful for the team, as he recorded an average of 11.8 points with 6.4 rebounds. However, Bates-Diop suffered a leg fracture by the following year, which massively affected his performance. He had only attended 9 games during his junior season, with an average of 9.7 points per game.

After his recovery, he ensured to play harder for the team and he achieved a career-high 27 points and earned a Big Ten Player of the Year award. He also received an Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week due to his strong performance against the Iowa Hawkeyes. For his final year at Ohio State University, he averaged 19.8 points with 8.7 rebounds and was announced to join the 2018 NBA Draft.