The Atlanta Hawks have signed rookie guard Kobe Bufkin and rookie forward Mouhamed Gueye, the team announced today. Per team policy, the terms of the agreements were not disclosed.
Bufkin appeared in 61 games (33 starts) throughout his two-year career at the University of Michigan, averaging 9.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 23.3 minutes (.463 FG%, .325 3FG%, .833 FT%). Named to the 2023 All-Big Ten Third Team (media), the 6-4 guard saw action in 33 games (all starts) during his sophomore season, tallying 14.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.3 steals in 34.0 minutes of action (.482 FG%, .355 3FG%, .849 FT%).
Bufkin netted 10 or more points in 24 of his 33 games played during the 2022-23 campaign, including seven outings with at least 20 points. In a 68-51 win at Northwestern on Feb. 2, 2023, he notched a near triple-double, recording a career-high 12 rebounds and a career-high eight assists, to go along with 15 points, two steals, and one block in 38 minutes.
The Grand Rapids, Michigan native helped lead the Wolverines to back-to-back postseason appearances, reaching the Sweet 16 in the 2022 NCAA Tournament and the second round of the 2023 NIT. A four-star recruit out of Grand Rapids Christian High School, Bufkin was named a 2021 McDonald’s All-American.
Gueye (pronounced mo-HAH-med Gay) saw action in 68 games (66 starts) during his two-year career at Washington State, registering 10.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 26.9 minutes (.489 FG%, .613 FT%). He became just the ninth Cougar to be drafted inside the top 40 and Washington State’s highest NBA Draft pick since Klay Thompson in 2011 (No. 11 overall by Golden State).
The 6-11 forward appeared in 33 games (all starts) during the 2022-23 season, notching 14.3 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 32.1 minutes, en route to an All-Pac-12 First Team selection (.488 FG%, .674 FT%). Gueye’s 8.4 rebounds per game were the fourth-most in the Pac-12, while his 14.3 points were the ninth-best in the conference. He tallied 15 double-doubles during the 2022-23 campaign, the most in the Pac-12 and the sixth-most in a single season in Washington State history.
Named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team in 2021-22, Gueye started in 33 of Washington State’s 35 games played in the 2021-22 season, tying Klay Thompson’s program record for most starts by a true freshman. The Dakar, Senegal native recorded 33 blocks during his freshman campaign (fourth-most in program history by a freshman), 181 steals (fifth-most by a freshman), and 29 steals (10th-most by a freshman).