Arizona State transfer Massamba Diop signs financial aid agreement with Gonzaga

May 5—One week after announcing a commitment to Gonzaga, prized transfer portal center Massamba Diop has signed a financial aid agreement with the university, according to a news release.

The 7-foot-1, 230-pound center chose Gonzaga over St. John's after entering the transfer portal with a "do not contact" tag and bolsters what many believe could be top-10 roster in college basketball heading into the 2026-27 season.

Diop brings athleticism and rim protection to a team that returns three key rotation players — Braden Huff, Mario Saint-Supery and Davis Fogle — after winning 31 games and West Coast Conference regular-season and tournament championships.

The ASU center transfers to Gonzaga with three years of eligibility remaining and instantly becomes the top candidate to start in the frontcourt alongside Huff, who was leading the nation in 2-point field goals before suffering a season-ending knee injury in February.

Diop averaged 13.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and ranked second in the Big 12 Conference at 2.1 blocks per game last season. His 69 total blocks also ranked third among college freshmen.

Diop led the Sun Devils while making 56.9% of his field goals last season and connected on 30% of his 3-point tries, albeit on just 0.8 attempts per game. He also made 71.5% from the free -throw line, attempting 4.4 per game.

Before playing at ASU, Diop spent two seasons with Spanish club Gran Canaria, which competes in the ACB league and EuroCup. The Rufisque, Senegal, native averaged 16.1 points, 7.9 rebounds and 2.6 "stocks" (steals + blocks) over 14 games for Gran Canaria's second team during the 2024-25 season.

Prior to Gran Canaria, Diop spent time playing with Real Madrid's development program, where he teamed with Ismaila Diagne, a 7-foot center who spent the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons at Gonzaga before transferring to San Francisco last week.

Diop becomes the first of Gonzaga's two incoming transfers to sign a binding agreement with the school. Guard Isiah Harwell, a Houston transfer and former top-20 prospect, committed to the Zags roughly three weeks before Diop but hasn't inked a financial aid agreement yet. Harwell is currently going through the NBA draft process and participating at the G League Elite Camp in Chicago this week.