Big 12 Basketball: Ranking of 25 best players from last decade (2013-23)

12. Georges Niang

A 6’8 wing from Methuen, Massachusetts, Niang was originally recruited to Iowa State back in 2012 by Fred Hoiberg. He was an incredible weapon across four seasons with the Cyclones, including sticking around under new head coach Steve Prohm for his senior season.

We won’t talk much about a freshman year that was over a decade ago, but Niang had quite the offensive numbers. He was already averaging 16.7 points per game as a sophomore and helped lead Iowa State to the Big 12 Tournament title and the Sweet Sixteen, though he was injured in the opening round. After keying the Cyclones to another Big 12 Tournament win as a junior, he’d average 20.5 points and 6.2 rebounds as a senior, a season that ended with another trip to the Sweet Sixteen. Niang scored at least 28 points in all three of those Tourney games and went out with quite the bang.

Niang was Big 12 Tournament MVP as a junior and was a two-time First Team All-Big 12 honoree. Not only was he a Second Team All-American as a senior, but he won the Karl Malone Award as the nation’s top power forward. Niang was among the top scorers in the nation and led the Big 12 in field goal percentage. He was a part of great success for the Cyclones under multiple head coaches and his contributions won’t soon be forgotten.