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Tacko Fall

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This is the latest accepted revision, reviewed on 30 December 2024. Senegalese basketball player (born 1995)

Tacko Fall
Fall with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2021
No. 99 – New Zealand Breakers
PositionCenter
LeagueNBL
Personal information
Born (1995-12-10) 10 December 1995 (age 29)
Dakar, Senegal
Listed height7 ft 6 in (2.29 m)
Listed weight311 lb (141 kg)
Career information
High school
CollegeUCF (2015–2019)
NBA draft2019: undrafted
Playing career2019–present
Career history
2019–2021Boston Celtics
2019–2020→Maine Red Claws
2021–2022Cleveland Cavaliers
2021–2022→Cleveland Charge
2022–2023Xinjiang Flying Tigers
2023–2024Nanjing Monkey Kings
2024–presentNew Zealand Breakers
Career highlights and awards
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

El Hadji Tacko Sereigne Diop Fall (born 10 December 1995) is a Senegalese professional basketball player for the New Zealand Breakers of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL). He has previously played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers.

Fall was born and raised in Dakar, Senegal. He moved to the United States at age 16 and later played college basketball for the University of Central Florida (UCF). Fall went undrafted in the 2019 NBA draft, but later signed with the Boston Celtics. During his two seasons in Boston, he became a fan favorite. He signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers as a free agent in 2021.

At 7 feet 6 inches (2.29 metres), Fall was one of the tallest NBA players and is one of the tallest living humans. At the 2019 NBA Draft Combine, his measurements set all-time NBA records for tallest height in shoes (7 ft 7 in; 2.31 m), longest wingspan (8 ft 2.25 in; 250 cm), and highest standing reach (10 ft 2.5 in; 3.11 m). The NBA now lists players' heights without shoes, so Fall is listed at 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m).

Early life

Fall was born and raised in Dakar, Senegal. In 2011, Senegalese basketball coach Ibrahima N'Diaye, the brother of former NBA player Mamadou N'Diaye, heard from a friend about an exceptionally tall teenager he had seen playing with friends in a local street. After identifying him, they visited the 15-year-old Fall—who already stood 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) tall—at his home and persuaded Fall's mother, Marianne Diop Sene, to allow Fall to start attending N'Diaye's basketball academy. Fall moved to the United States at age 16. He first played organized basketball in Houston, Texas, and trained with NBA Hall-of-Famer Hakeem Olajuwon.

Fall was listed as 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) and was purportedly still growing around his senior year, making him the tallest high-school basketball player in the country while he played for Jamie's House Charter and Liberty Christian Prep.

Due to his height and reach, Fall was one of the most highly scouted high-school basketball centers in the nation. Fall first played for Jamie's House Charter School in Houston, where his team won the state championship. Fall played with ISTI all-stars summer travel team and for Each 1 Teach 1 on the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL) circuit where he played alongside fellow class of 2015 recruits Antonio Blakeney and Ben Simmons. Fall also played in several NCAA certified events, including the NBPA Top 100 Camp in Virginia. He then attended Liberty Christian Preparatory School in Tavares, Florida. As a senior in 2015, Fall averaged 20 points, 15 rebounds, and 5.1 blocks per game. Rated as a four-star and three-star recruit in the 2015 high-school class, nearly 40 different schools expressing interest in him, Fall committed to the University of Central Florida in Orlando, who officially signed him on 28 October 2014. He played with the UCF Knights under head coach Donnie Jones.

College career

Fall at UCF in 2017

Fall played college basketball at University of Central Florida for Knights as a center. He faced fellow giant Senegalese center Mamadou N'Diaye, who stands at 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m), in the tallest tip-off and match-up in U.S. college basketball history in a game against University of California Irvine. Both men come from the same city, Dakar. By his sophomore year, after N'Diaye declared for the 2016 NBA draft, Fall became the tallest player in college basketball. During his sophomore season, Fall would make considerable improvements in his playing style. In 2017, Fall was named American Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year.

Fall grew to be an efficient player, ranking second nationally in field-goal percentage as of January 2017. On 5 April 2017, Fall declared for the 2017 NBA draft, with the possibility of returning to Central Florida still available to him before the end of the draft lottery that year. On 24 May 2017, Fall withdrew his name from consideration for the NBA draft, to return to UCF for his junior year. During his junior year, Fall injured his shoulder, causing him to play in only 16 games, totaling 351 minutes. Coming into his senior season, Fall was named to the Preseason Second Team All-AAC. During his senior season, Fall helped lead the Knights to the 2019 NCAA tournament and secured their first victory in program history with a win over Virginia Commonwealth University. In his final game, Fall recorded 15 points and six rebounds in a losing effort against Duke University 77–76.

Professional career

After the conclusion of his senior year, Fall was named one of 80 participants (40 representing the NBA draft hopefuls) for the NBA G League Elite Camp on May 12–14. By the end of the event, Fall later got transferred into the NBA Draft Combine as one of an additional 11 participants there. During the combine, he put up new records at the event, including height (which received comparisons to former NBA player Manute Bol), wingspan, and standing reach.

Boston Celtics (2019–2021)

Despite going undrafted in the 2019 NBA draft, Fall was signed to an Exhibit 10 Contract on 21 June 2019, by the Boston Celtics. Fall played for the Celtics during the 2019 NBA Summer League season, scoring six points in his first game alongside four rebounds; in his second game, Fall tallied 12 points for his first double-digit scoring game, alongside another rebound. Fall had one blocked shot in each of his first two games. Fall concluded his 2019 Summer League run participating in all five games with the Celtics and averaging 7.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, and shooting a team-high 77 percent from the field.

On 25 July 2019, the Celtics officially announced that they had signed Fall. On 13 October 2019, the Celtics officially announced that they had signed Fall to a two-way contract, splitting time between the Celtics and Maine Red Claws. Fall made his debut for the Celtics on 26 October during a game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. He played for four minutes, scoring four points and grabbing three rebounds, with his first points coming from a standing dunk. On 20 December, Fall recorded a season-high five points, along with two rebounds and one block, in a 114–93 win over the Detroit Pistons. On 13 August 2020, he logged season highs of four rebounds and two blocks in a 90–96 loss to the Washington Wizards. Fall led the Celtics in field goal percentage during the 2019–20 season.

In the G League for the Red Claws, Fall averaged a double-double of 12.9 points and 11.1 rebounds per game. He earned All-Defensive Team honors, with averages of nearly three blocks per game.

On 23 November 2020, Fall re-signed with the Boston Celtics on a two-way contract, allowing him to play for the Celtics and Maine Red Claws in the 2020–21 season. On 30 December, Fall made his season debut for the Celtics, recording two points, a rebound, and two blocks in a 126–107 win over the Memphis Grizzlies. On 15 January 2021, Fall logged a season-high six points, along with five rebounds and one block, in a 124–97 blowout win over the Orlando Magic. On 5 May, he recorded a season-high four blocks in a 132–96 blowout win over the Orlando Magic. On 16 May, Fall grabbed a season-high eight rebounds in a 92–96 loss to the New York Knicks. Despite being under a two-way contract, Fall never played in the G League during the 2020–21 season due to the Red Claws not playing due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He also led the Celtics in field goal percentage for the second season in a row.

Cleveland Cavaliers (2021–2022)

On 27 September 2021, Fall signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers. On 16 October, his deal was converted to a two-way contract with the Cleveland Charge. On 11 November, Fall made his debut for the Charge, logging a G League career-high 23 points along with 12 rebounds and three blocks in 29 minutes of play. On 22 December, Fall made his first career NBA start in a 111–101 loss to his former team, the Boston Celtics, where he grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds and a season-high four points.

On 9 January 2022, Fall was waived by the Cavaliers.

Cleveland Charge (2022)

On 12 January 2022, Fall was re-acquired by the Cleveland Charge.

Xinjiang Flying Tigers (2022–2023)

On 24 August 2022, Fall signed a one-year contract to play for the Xinjiang Flying Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association.

Fall joined the Milwaukee Bucks for the 2023 NBA Summer League.

Nanjing Monkey Kings (2023–2024)

On 17 August 2023, Fall signed with the Nanjing Monkey Kings. Following the CBA season, he reportedly signed with Piratas de Quebradillas in Puerto Rico.

New Zealand Breakers (2024–present)

In September 2024, Fall joined the New Zealand Breakers of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL) for the club's three-game U.S. tour. He went on to miss all three games due to a quad injury. Fall returned with the Breakers to New Zealand where he trained with the team as a practice player. On November 26, 2024, he signed a two-year contract with the Breakers.

Player profile

Given his size, Fall plays the center position. His shoe size is 22 (US), his wingspan is 8 ft 4 in (2.54 m) and he has a reported standing reach of 10 ft 2 in (3.10 m). Fall also has a maximum vertical leap of 2 ft 2.5 in (67 cm). Fall's hands measure at 10.5 inches (27 cm) in length and width. Prior to the 2019 NBA draft, Fall was viewed as a great shot blocker who was relatively lacking in lane agility and three-quarter-court sprinting speed.

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

NBA

Source

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2019–20 Boston 7 0 4.7 .786 — .333 2.1 .1 .1 .6 3.3
2020–21 Boston 19 0 7.2 .724 — .333 2.7 .2 .1 1.1 2.5
2021–22 Cleveland 11 1 5.4 .417 — .286 2.1 .2 .0 .5 1.1
Career 37 1 6.2 .673 — .320 2.4 .2 .1 .8 2.2

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2020 Boston 2 0 1.5 1.000 — .500 .5 .0 .0 .0 1.5
2021 Boston 1 0 1.0 — — — 1.0 .0 .0 .0 .0
Career 3 0 1.3 1.000 — .500 .7 .0 .0 .0 1.0

College

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2015–16 UCF 30 26 17.6 .750 — .558 5.9 .3 .1 2.3 7.4
2016–17 UCF 36 36 26.3 .715 .000 .462 9.5 .6 .3 2.6 10.9
2017–18 UCF 16 15 21.9 .767 — .460 7.3 .3 .3 1.9 11.3
2018–19 UCF 32 32 24.9 .750 — .363 7.7 .5 .3 2.6 11.0
Career 115 110 23.0 .740 .000 .432 7.7 .4 .2 2.4 10.1

Personal life

Fall is a Muslim, and selected the jersey number 99 with the Celtics as a reference to the 99 names of Allah. He is not the only tall member of his family; his younger brother was reportedly 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) at age 7, while two of his uncles are 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m), but his extreme height stands apart even among them. Fall maintained a 4.0 grade-point average (GPA) in high school, while taking advanced mathematics and science classes. He became fluent in English within eight months and scored in the 95th percentile on the SAT. Fall was a computer-science major at UCF and originally had aspirations of becoming an engineer for electronic companies such as Siemens or Microsoft.

References

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External links

New Zealand Breakers current roster
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