Mark Few’s pipeline to the NBA keeps humming, and this summer’s league slate has seven more former Gonzaga players trying to turn opportunity into something bigger.
Three Zags from last season are already angling to join the program’s long list of NBA names in 2026-27: Graham Ike, Jalen Warley and Tyon Grant-Foster. They’ll be part of a group of seven former Gonzaga players in the NBA Summer League, which opened Friday and runs through mid-July.
Not every recent Zag is on a roster right now. Nolan Hickman and Ryan Woolridge, both G League players last season, are not listed, and neither is Adam Miller, who finished his college career in Spokane in 2025-26. Drew Timme and Malachi Smith also aren’t on summer league rosters, though both have NBA contracts.
Ike got his chance quickly. He signed an Exhibit 10 deal with Golden State after the draft and is trying to work his way into a two-way contract with Steve Kerr’s team as the Warriors chase another Finals run.
The 6-foot-9 big man closed his college career by earning Third Team All-American honors in 2025-26, and his mix of physicality, length, screen setting, touch near the basket and improving outside shot gives Golden State plenty to evaluate. He opened Friday against the Lakers with 11 points, four rebounds, three assists and a block on 5-for-7 shooting in 19 minutes.
Golden State’s next game is against Sacramento on Sunday at 2:00 PM PT on ESPN+.
Grant-Foster is in a different kind of spotlight. He earned an invitation from the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs less than a week after the NBA’s fitness-to-play panel cleared him to participate following multiple cardiac arrests earlier in his career.
At 6-foot-7, he brings length, edge and a real downhill scoring punch, especially in transition and at the rim, where he draws contact. The jumper is the issue, and so is the free throw shooting, but he still profiles as the kind of isolation scorer and perimeter defender who can stand out in this setting.
San Antonio and Golden State meet Sunday, July 5 at 4:00 PM PT on ESPN+.
Warley also landed a summer league opportunity after pre-draft workouts with Golden State and Indiana. The Pacers liked enough to bring him in, and he’ll be trying to earn a spot alongside former Zag Andrew Nembhard.
Warley’s calling card is clear: he’s a strong perimeter defender and facilitator who does almost everything well except shoot from deep. That unusual skill set should make him one of the more interesting watches this month.
Indiana opens summer league Friday, July 10 against the Cleveland Cavaliers at 1:30 PM PT on ESPN2.
Watson is back for his third NBA Summer League with his third team. The former Zag was drafted No. 54 overall by Boston in 2024 and signed to a two-way deal, but the Celtics moved on before he ever played an NBA game.
New York picked him up, and he appeared in nine games in 2024-25. Last season, he spent the full year with the South Bay Lakers in the G League, putting up 11 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists across 50 games.
Now he’s back with LA, and he logged 20 minutes Friday against Golden State, finishing with nine points, three rebounds, one assist and a block while shooting 2-for-3 from the field and 3-for-3 at the line.
Ajayi signed a two-way contract with Charlotte after a strong final season at Butler, where he led the Big East in rebounding and averaged more than 16 points per game. He didn’t fully click in Spokane, but his college resume at Pepperdine and Butler shows a productive player who can bring toughness, physicality and work on the glass.
The missing piece is still the outside shot. Charlotte plays Orlando on Thursday, July 9 at 4:30 PM PT on Prime Video.
Sallis is another Zag trying to keep building. He went undrafted in 2025, then signed with Philadelphia and played seven NBA games as a rookie.
Most of his season came in the G League, where he averaged 12.3 points in eight games with the Delaware Blue Coats and 14 points while shooting 35.9% from three in 28 games with the Ontario Clippers. He’s now with Brooklyn for summer league and could reunite with former Gonzaga teammate Malachi Smith if things line up.
The Nets open Saturday, July 4 against Sacramento at 2:00 PM PT on ESPN+.
Nembhard is coming off a strong rookie year with Dallas and arrives at summer league with a lot less to prove than most of the names on this list. He was with Team Canada in the FIBA World Cup qualifiers and is also on the Mavericks’ roster, though he may not play much after appearing in 60 games and averaging 6.6 points and 5.3 assists, including a record 23 assists in the regular-season finale. Dallas starts Thursday, July 9 at 4:00 PM PT against Golden State on ESPN.
In Other News...
Gonzaga Set To Honor A Major NBA Alum In A Big Way
Gonzaga is preparing to put a familiar face on one of the most important spaces in its basketball operation, with the university announcing that its strength and conditioning facility for both the mens and womens programs will be renamed in honor of a former Bulldog who has gone on to NBA success. The dedication is set for Thursday afternoon inside the Volkar Center for Athletic Achievement, a fitting backdrop for a program that has made player development a central part of its identity.
The move also underscores how far Gonzagas NBA pipeline has come, with former Bulldogs now showing up not just on league rosters but near the top of the schools all-time earnings lists. Gonzaga is already third nationally in combined NBA earnings behind Kentucky and Duke, and this latest honor adds another layer to the schools growing pro legacy, even as one key detail about the tribute remains under wraps. [Read more 🡒]
Massamba Diop Is Suddenly Fueling Gonzagas Next NBA Buzz
Massamba Diop is already giving Gonzaga a different kind of offseason buzz, the sort that usually comes with a roster loaded with proven veterans or a blue-chip freshman class. Instead, the conversation is being driven by a 7-foot-1 center from Senegal who is projected to anchor a sophomore lineup that could also feature Davis Fogle, Isiah Harwell and Mario Saint-Supery, all of whom have shown up on early NBA draft boards.
For the Bulldogs, the appeal is obvious: if that group comes together, the ceiling is high enough to keep Gonzaga squarely in the Pac-12 race and in the national tournament mix. Diops rising profile is especially notable because the early lottery chatter around him has changed the way people talk about the frontcourt, and it has also added a little urgency to what could be a very short stay in Spokane if his stock keeps climbing. [Read more 🡒]
Former Zag Rasir Bolton Just Took Another Big Step Overseas
Rasir Boltons pro journey keeps taking him farther across Europe, and the former Gonzaga guard is on the move again after his latest contract decision. Bolton, who spent two seasons in Spokane as a key starter for the Bulldogs, has already built a rsum that stretches well beyond college basketball, with stops in multiple countries since beginning his international career.
His next destination adds another chapter to that well-traveled path, and it comes after a productive run in Italy with Napoli Basket. Boltons latest move underscores both his value as a perimeter scorer and the unusual rhythm of a career that has rarely stayed in one place for long, even as he continues to carve out a steady role overseas. [Read more 🡒]