Newly drafted Hawks forward Mouhamed Gueye had dreams of playing professional soccer. Then he got his first taste of basketball at 15, participating with his older brother, and he never looked back.
Despite playing organized basketball since he was only 16 years old, Gueye’s raw talent has intrigued the Hawks. They held a private unpublicized workout, then brought him back for a second group workout June 14. The team targeted him early, eventually trading a 2027 second-round pick to acquire his draft rights from the Celtics at No. 39.
At 6-foot-11, Gueye (pronounced ‘GAY’) boasts a 7-3 wingspan that left the Hawks in awe.
“He’s got an unbelievable wingspan (that I) wish I had as a player, and the tools that he has at his size is rare,” Hawks general manager Landry Fields said. “You don’t see that very often. And just our assessment of him and his athleticism and the body type that he has, his ability to move his feet defensively to where we can see cross matchups, that’s something that he’s gonna grow into.
“He mentioned his shooting earlier. He’s not a nonshooter at all, like he can shoot the ball, but we want to get that to a consistent level to where he’s an unbelievable threat on both sides of the ball. And that’s something for him, he’s gonna grow a little more, too, but the potential for him and all three of these guys is really, really high.”
Even though Gueye has the size and measurements of an NBA center, the Hawks ultimately see him as a 3-and-D wing. The goal is to develop his ability to move his feet and his already solid shooting mechanics.
“The vision is just creating a monster, I guess,” Gueye told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “So it’s kind of hard to put a visual into it. So that’s why I’m excited. I just can’t wait to see how it’s gonna turn out.”
Gueye comes from a basketball family. His brother and sister played, and he has cousins who are his height or taller. So, stepping into the gym and onto the court almost felt inevitable.
So, his brother, who has a gym, found a coach for him, and he worked out with him for an entire year. He also got time in with some of his brother’s friends who played internationally to build his skills. At 16, he landed with Prolific Prep, in Napa, California, before heading to Washington State.
There, he became a 2022-23 All-Pac-12 first-team selection by coaches and second team by media. He tied for 16th in the nation in double-doubles (15) and 20th in offensive rebounds per game (3.4) as a sophomore.
Falling in love with basketball was easy for Gueye, who could see the tangible results of his work every time he stepped on the court. He averaged 7.4 points and 5.2 rebounds per game in his freshman season at Washington State. By his sophomore season, he’d almost doubled his production, averaging 14.3 points and 8.4 rebounds.
“So, me seeing myself get better, it was probably the main thing because I was not good when I first started, I was terrible,” Gueye said. I couldn’t move, and so me working and seeing myself improve, I was intrigued, and that’s how I fell in love with the game and just working with him every time waking up early, going by myself, finishing late night. That just made me say ‘OK, I love this game I want to be better.’ So that makes it easy.”
Gueye likely will spend much of next season in College Park with the Skyhawks, the Hawks’ G League affiliate. He’s all for it because he’s ready to do what it takes to succeed in the NBA long term.
Along with his physical attributes that impressed the Hawks, he also impressed them with his humility and internal drive. Fields highlighted those along with a number of other attributes he said embodies the team’s identity.
“The internal drive that every one of these guys have, the work that they put in, the intelligence, the IQ, grit, all those things are very important for what we’re doing and what we’re building here with (coach) Quin (Snyder) in his system, and I couldn’t be more excited,” Fields said of Gueye, as well as 15th overall pick Kobe Bufkin and Seth Lundy, who the team selected at No. 46.
Gueye looks forward to playing for the Hawks, as well, and he can’t wait to call the city home.
“Man, just the interaction I had with the people before because I had a teammate last year at Wazzu, he’s from Atlanta,” he said. “So, he was telling me a lot about Atlanta. And just, last year I was here. I did my pre-draft workout. So, it was just honestly the interaction I had with them and the plan they had for me, like how they see me is how I see myself in the future, a combination forward. I just thought Atlanta was the perfect place for me.”
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