Atlanta Hawks center N’Faly Dante will undergo season-ending surgery in January to repair a torn ACL in his right knee, which he suffered during the NBA G League Winter Showcase, the team announced Tuesday.
N’Faly Dante Joined Hawks Over The Summer
Dante, 24, suffered the injury while playing for the College Park Skyhawks at the G League’s Winter Showcase last Friday. The 6-foot-11 big man fell to the floor after awkwardly twisting his right knee following a rebound.
Per Spotrac, Dante finished the 2024-25 season on a two-way contract with the Houston Rockets. He was the NBA’s only restricted free agent to sign an offer sheet during the summer.
The second-year center received a two-way qualifying offer from Houston, then signed a two-year, minimum-salary deal with the Hawks that Houston elected not to match.
An @emoryhealthcare injury update:
N’Faly Dante sustained a right knee injury during the College Park Skyhawks game vs. Texas during the NBA G League Winter Showcase in Orlando, Florida on December 19. Following an MRI at the Emory Sports Medicine Complex, Dante was diagnosed… pic.twitter.com/sq1sMvOr7h
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) December 23, 2025
Through eight NBA career regular-season games off the bench, Dante has averaged 3.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, 0.6 blocks, and 8.3 minutes per contest while shooting 64.7% from the field and 83.3% from the free throw line.
He made his official NBA debut in Houston’s 137-128 loss at the Oklahoma City Thunder on March 3, scoring a career-high 10 points on 4-of-6 (66.7%) shooting from the floor and 2-for-3 (66.7%) from the foul line.
Dante Was In League’s Concussion Protocol
Dante averaged 6.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks as a two-way player for Houston. This season, the Oregon product appeared in just four games for Atlanta and four for College Park.
Before tearing his ACL, he was sidelined for over two weeks while going through the concussion protocol due to a head injury that he sustained while playing for the Skyhawks.
Friday’s game was his first one back from the injury.
Although the Hawks could apply for a disabled player exception (DPE) for Dante, the exception would be worth just $1.02 million, half of his minimum salary ($2.04 million).
Dante is the third player on Atlanta’s roster to suffer a season-ending injury this month.
Two-way forward Jacob Toppin underwent season-ending right shoulder surgery earlier this month and was subsequently waived, while two-way wing Eli Ndiaye will also have left shoulder surgery in early January.
