St. John's rejected by 7-1 center Massamba Diop, who chooses Gonzaga
Massamba Diop of Arizona State reacts on Jan. 14, 2026, in Tucson, AZ. Credit: Getty Images/Christian Petersen
The long courtship between St. John’s and prized 7-1 Arizona State transfer Massamba Diop has ended and the Red Storm did not get their man.
The St. John’s staff was informed on Tuesday that Diop had chosen Gonzaga as his next destination over the Storm, according to a source familiar with the situation. And this came after the Storm went to great lengths to woo him, including a Madison Square Garden workout with guard Ian Jackson and an offer that compared favorably with the one proffered by the Zags.
Since the first days after the Red Storm’s run to their first NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 ended with a loss to Duke, St. John’s coach Rick Pitino made it no secret, that needing someone to replace star center Zuby Ejiofor, he would want a 7-footer. In a video for fans that Pitino recorded before the Final Four, he said, “If you look at all the teams remaining, there's one common denominator: They all have seven-foot-plus centers and we did not. That's something we're looking at strongly right now.”
And St. John’s took hard looks at a pair of highly-regarded transfer candidates, 7-2 Moustapha Thaim from Cincinnati and Diop. The Storm brought both to campus. Thaim chose Michigan last week.
Diop, who averaged 13.8 points on 57% shooting along with 5.8 rebounds and 2.1 blocked shots, visited with Gonzaga the weekend before last but did not commit. He was in New York this weekend.
Diop agent Jason Ranne has a lot of familiarity with the Gonzaga program and has represented several former Zags who went on to play professionally, though it’s not clear how much of a role that played.
The Red Storm may continue to seek a center, or they could go with 6-11 Ruben Prey, who has shown Pitino’s desired appetite for contact and played well in the most recent postseason. They also have 7-1 Serbian Lazar Stojkovic.
St. John’s also showed interest in Seton Hall transfer Najai Hines and Kansas transfer Flory Bidunga, but neither made visits to the Storm. Hines committed to UConn and Bidunga to Louisville.
Roger Rubin returned to Newsday in 2018 to write about high schools, colleges and baseball following 20 years at the Daily News. A Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2011, he has covered 13 MLB postseasons and 14 NCAA Final Fours.
