Tacko Fall facts for kids
.jpg)
Fall with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2021
|
|
| Free agent | |
|---|---|
| Center | |
| Personal information | |
| Born | 10 December 1995 Dakar, Senegal |
| High school |
|
| Listed height | 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) |
| Listed weight | 311 lb (141 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | UCF (2015–2019) |
| NBA Draft | 2019 / Undrafted |
| Pro career | 2019–present |
| Career history | |
| 2019–2021 | Boston Celtics |
| 2019–2020 | →Maine Red Claws |
| 2021–2022 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 2021–2022 | →Cleveland Charge |
| 2022–2023 | Xinjiang Flying Tigers |
| 2023–2024 | Nanjing Monkey Kings |
| 2024–2025 | New Zealand Breakers |
| 2025 | Nanjing Monkey Kings |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
|
El Hadji Tacko Sereigne Diop Fall (born December 10, 1995) is a professional basketball player from Senegal. He last played for the Nanjing Monkey Kings in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He also played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers.
Tacko Fall was born and grew up in Dakar, Senegal. When he was 16, he moved to the United States. He later played college basketball for the UCF Knights. Even though he was not chosen in the 2019 NBA draft, he later joined the Boston Celtics. During his two years with the Celtics, fans really loved him. In 2021, he signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
At 7 feet 6 inches (2.29 metres) tall, Fall is one of the tallest NBA players ever. He is also one of the tallest living people. At the 2019 NBA Draft Combine, he set new records. These included the tallest height with shoes on (7 ft 7 in; 2.31 m), the longest wingspan (8 ft 2.25 in; 250 cm), and the highest standing reach (10 ft 2.5 in; 3.11 m). The NBA now lists player heights without shoes. So, Fall is listed at 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m).
Contents
Early Life and Basketball Start
Tacko Fall was born and grew up in Dakar, Senegal. In 2011, a basketball coach named Ibrahima N'Diaye heard about a very tall teenager. This teenager was playing basketball with friends on the street. N'Diaye found 15-year-old Fall, who was already 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) tall. He convinced Fall's mother to let him join his basketball academy.
Fall moved to the United States when he was 16. He first played organized basketball in Houston, Texas. There, he trained with NBA Hall-of-Famer Hakeem Olajuwon.
Fall was listed as 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) tall in high school. He was even said to be still growing. This made him the tallest high school basketball player in the country. He played for Jamie's House Charter and Liberty Christian Prep.
Because of his amazing height and reach, many colleges wanted Fall to play for them. He first played for Jamie's House Charter School in Houston. His team won the state championship there. Fall also played for summer travel teams. He played alongside other future basketball stars like Ben Simmons. He then went to Liberty Christian Preparatory School in Tavares, Florida. In his senior year (2015), Fall averaged 20 points, 15 rebounds, and 5.1 blocks per game. Many schools were interested in him. Fall decided to go to the University of Central Florida in Orlando. He officially signed with them on October 28, 2014. He played for the UCF Knights.
College Basketball Career
_(cropped).jpg)
Fall played college basketball as a center for the UCF Knights. He once played against another very tall player from Senegal, Mamadou N'Diaye. N'Diaye is also 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) tall. This game was against the University of California Irvine. It was the tallest tip-off and match-up in U.S. college basketball history. Both players came from the same city, Dakar.
By his second year, Fall became the tallest player in college basketball. This happened after N'Diaye decided to enter the 2016 NBA draft. During his second season, Fall greatly improved his playing style. In 2017, he was named the American Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year.
Fall became a very effective player. In January 2017, he was ranked second in the country for his field-goal percentage. On April 5, 2017, Fall said he would enter the 2017 NBA draft. However, he could still choose to return to UCF. On May 24, 2017, Fall decided to withdraw from the NBA draft. He returned to UCF for his third year. During this year, Fall hurt his shoulder. This meant he only played in 16 games.
Before his senior season, Fall was named to the Preseason Second Team All-AAC. In his senior year, Fall helped the Knights reach the 2019 NCAA tournament. They won their first game in program history against Virginia Commonwealth University. In his last college game, Fall scored 15 points and grabbed six rebounds. His team lost a close game to Duke University by one point (77–76).
Professional Basketball Career
After college, Fall was one of 80 players invited to the NBA G League Elite Camp. He later moved on to the NBA Draft Combine. At the combine, he set new records for height, wingspan, and standing reach.
Boston Celtics (2019–2021)
Even though no team picked him in the 2019 NBA draft, the Boston Celtics signed Fall on June 21, 2019. Fall played for the Celtics in the 2019 NBA Summer League. In his first game, he scored six points and had four rebounds. In his second game, he scored 12 points, his first time scoring double digits. He also had one blocked shot in each of his first two games. Fall played in all five Summer League games for the Celtics. He averaged 7.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game. He also shot a team-high 77 percent from the field.
On July 25, 2019, the Celtics officially signed Fall. On October 13, they signed him to a two-way contract. This meant he would split his time between the Celtics and their G League team, the Maine Red Claws. Fall played his first game for the Celtics on October 26 against the New York Knicks. He played for four minutes, scoring four points and getting three rebounds. His first points came from a standing dunk. On December 20, he scored a season-high five points. He also had two rebounds and one block in a win over the Detroit Pistons. Fall led the Celtics in field goal percentage during the 2019–20 season.
In the G League, Fall averaged 12.9 points and 11.1 rebounds per game for the Red Claws. He was also named to the All-Defensive Team. He averaged almost three blocks per game.
On November 23, 2020, Fall re-signed with the Boston Celtics on another two-way contract. This allowed him to play for both the Celtics and the Maine Red Claws in the 2020–21 season. On December 30, Fall played his first game of the season for the Celtics. He had two points, one rebound, and two blocks in a win against the Memphis Grizzlies. On January 15, 2021, Fall scored a season-high six points. He also had five rebounds and one block in a big win over the Orlando Magic. On May 5, he recorded a season-high four blocks in another large victory against the Magic. On May 16, Fall grabbed a season-high eight rebounds in a close loss to the New York Knicks. Fall did not play in the G League during the 2020–21 season. This was because the Red Claws did not play due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He also led the Celtics in field goal percentage for the second year in a row.
Cleveland Cavaliers (2021–2022)
On September 27, 2021, Fall signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers. On October 16, his contract was changed to a two-way deal with the Cleveland Charge. On November 11, Fall played his first game for the Charge. He scored a G League career-high 23 points. He also had 12 rebounds and three blocks in 29 minutes. On December 22, Fall started his first NBA game. This was in a loss to his old team, the Celtics. He grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds and scored a season-high four points.
On January 9, 2022, the Cavaliers released Fall.
Cleveland Charge (2022)
On January 12, 2022, the Cleveland Charge brought Fall back to their team.
Xinjiang Flying Tigers (2022–2023)
On August 24, 2022, Fall signed a one-year contract. He went to play for the Xinjiang Flying Tigers in the Chinese Basketball Association.
Fall also joined the Milwaukee Bucks for the 2023 NBA Summer League.
Nanjing Monkey Kings and New Zealand Breakers (2023–2025)
On August 17, 2023, Fall signed with the Nanjing Monkey Kings of the Chinese Basketball Association. In 44 games during the 2023–24 season, he averaged 8.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game.
In September 2024, Fall joined the New Zealand Breakers. This team is from the Australian National Basketball League (NBL). He joined them for their three-game tour in the U.S. However, he missed all three games because of a leg injury. Fall returned to New Zealand with the Breakers. He trained with the team as a practice player. On November 26, he signed a two-year contract with the Breakers. In 18 games during the 2024–25 NBL season, he averaged 11.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks per game.
On March 2, 2025, Fall signed with the Nanjing Monkey Kings again. This was for the rest of the 2024–25 CBA season. In 12 games, he averaged 11.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game.
On July 22, 2025, the Breakers and Fall decided to part ways.
Player Profile and Skills
Because of his huge size, Fall plays the center position. His shoe size is 22 (US). His wingspan is 8 ft 4 in (2.54 m), and his standing reach is 10 ft 2 in (3.10 m). Fall can also jump 2 ft 2.5 in (0.67 m) high. His hands are 10.5 inches (27 cm) long and wide. Before the 2019 NBA draft, Fall was known as a great shot blocker. However, he was not as quick in moving side-to-side or running fast across the court.
Personal Life
Tacko Fall is a Muslim. He chose the jersey number 99 when he played for the Celtics. This number refers to the 99 names of Allah. He is not the only tall person in his family. Fall's younger brother was reportedly 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) at age seven. Two of his uncles are 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) tall. But Fall's extreme height is still very unique, even among them.
Fall kept a 4.0 grade-point average (GPA) in high school. He took advanced math and science classes. He learned to speak English very well in just eight months. He also scored very high on the SAT test. Fall studied computer-science at UCF. He originally wanted to become an engineer for companies like Siemens or Microsoft.
See also
In Spanish: Tacko Fall para niños
