Gonzaga set to host 7-1 Arizona State transfer Massamba Diop on campus visit

Gonzaga continues to address the various holes on its roster and could be close to filling another one through the transfer portal.

Massamba Diop, a 7-foot-1 center from Arizona State, is scheduled to visit Gonzaga on Saturday and Sunday, a source close to the program confirmed to The Spokesman-Review.

Gonzaga Bulldogs on SI was the first to report Diop’s visit, which comes less than a week after Mark Few’s program made its first splash in the transfer portal, landing a commitment from Houston guard and former top-20 high school prospect Isiah Harwell.

Diop entered the transfer portal with a “do not contact” tag and an April 9 report from 247Sports.com indicated the center was primarily focused on Gonzaga and St. John’s. Adam Zagoria, a New York-based sportswriter who covers the Red Storm and contributes to numerous media outlets, reported Tuesday that Diop also has a visit to St. John’s scheduled, though a date was not specified.

The Zags are familiar with Diop and his game, namely because they had to prepare for the rangy center back in November when Arizona State hosted Gonzaga in the second game of a two-year, home-and-home series.

Diop scored 11 points on 4 of 19 shooting and had four rebounds with two assists and two blocked shots in ASU’s 77-65 loss at Desert Financial Arena.

A native of Senegal, Diop averaged 13.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists during his freshman year in Tempe while ranking second in the Big 12 Conference at 2.1 blocks per game.

Diop could bring rim protection to a Gonzaga program that hasn’t had anyone average better than two blocks since Chet Holmgren turned away 3.7 game in 2021-22, breaking Brandon Clarke’s school record for blocks in a single season.

The freshman made 56.9% of his shots from the field, converted on 8 of his 26 (30.8%) shots from the 3-point line and connected at a 71.5% clip from the free throw line.

Diop would immediately become a candidate to start in Gonzaga’s frontcourt alongside forward Braden Huff, who’s expected to return after missing the final 17 games of the season with a left knee injury.