Former G League Ignite guard/forward Dink Pate, who played for the Westchester Knicks this season, has committed to Providence, agent Sam Permut tells Jeff Borzello of ESPN (Twitter link).
Kentucky, Alabama, NC State and Georgia had been recruiting Pate as well, tweets Jeff Goodman of Field of 68.
According to Borzello, Pate turned down 10-day and two-way contract opportunities from NBA teams with an eye on maintaining his college eligibility. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress reported in January that the 20-year-old had declined multiple two-way offers.
Pate, who suited up for the Mexico City Capitanes in 2024/25, averaged 16.4 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 0.9 steals in 50 total games (31.9 minutes per contest) for Westchester in ’25/26. His shooting slash line was .400/.346/.740, with most of his field goal attempts coming from three-point range.
As Givony wrote a few months ago, Pate graduated high school in 2023, which could put him in position to receive at least two seasons of NCAA eligibility, beginning next season. However, it’s unclear whether or not the 6’8″ swingman will be granted eligibility based on the NCAA’s current rules.
Like former second-round pick James Nnaji, who enrolled at Baylor this winter, Pate declared for – and kept his name in – an NBA draft (in 2025). However, unlike Nnaji, Pate has since signed an NBA contract, having completed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Knicks this past September.
NCAA president Charlie Baker said in December after Nnaji joined the Bears that any player who has signed an NBA deal, “including a two-way contract,” would not be permitted to play NCAA basketball. Baker’s comments in December didn’t clarify whether the NCAA views Exhibit 10 contracts as disqualifying. Exhibit 10 deals are non-guaranteed and only put a player in line for a modest bonus if he subsequently spends at least 60 days with his team’s G League affiliate.
He might be a baller, but his given name is Very Bad/F-Tier. His parents get an F on this.
He needs to play with Leaky Black.
I hear you, his name is just fantastic! I literally can’t not laugh every time I hear it.
Cried that he didn’t want to be on a two way contract and then does this lol. Why did you go to the G league in the firstplace?. Who is giving these guys advice?
Giving basketball advice to teens and young men:
“Go PRO… hone your skills and work on your game playing pro ball so you can go back to college and reach your basketball potential!”
I don’t understand college eligibility anymore
Man this sucks. Don’t see how this happens if he has played in G-league two yrs. Man I don’t want to lose him. Knicks can make trades and sign him next yr. He’s probably getting NIL money lols. Wow
Kid got game. Is a big guard.
So ends the mystery of why Dillon Jones got the NYK’s 2-way deal that opened up mid-year.
Probably a good move to turn it down and go in this direction. The Providence gig likely pays well in excess of a 2-way salary (maybe even a 1st year salary), and, when he leaves college (next month or in a year or two) he’ll be a UFA (I believe, since he’s been through the draft and isn’t finishing the year under NBA contract). The one caveat is possibly having his status get tied up in court.
The move of waiving that Ivey league guy to sign Jones was a big mistake
I thought this guy had talent but he and maybe teams didn’t want to give him a two way contract. His first mistake. Sometimes you need to prove yourself, not everything is handed on some effort. The college money is all he will get now.
James Nnaji is playing bad at Baylor so yeah wrong choice again. College players shouldn’t get paid any money
Did you miss the part where the article says he intentionally chose to not sign any NBA deals for this reason?
He didn’t want a two way contract, he wanted a secure garentee contract. He is sitting there stewing so did this. He said it in a different article no two way contract please. Know the whole story before making an assumption.
This should be banned. NCAA is super corrupted now
So your saying he went to the G league to get to the nba to get cash but didn’t and now going to the NCAA to get cash andthen to the nba is his plan? Okay dude
I had high hopes for him but Knicks just don’t have any room on the Roster and IMO McCullers and Diadet rank higher.