Ian Mahinmi

Ian Mahinmi is a French professional basketball player who plays for the Washington Wizards of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Mahinmi played in the 2004 Under-18 European Championships in Zaragoza, Spain where he first made his impression on international scouts. He signed his first contract with the club STB Le Havre (France) after playing with the French national team.

In three season with this club, Mahinmi averaged 9.7 points and 5.2 rebounds per game in 2005–06. He signed a contract to play for Pau Orthez in France's top professional league in the summer of 2006. He helped the team win the French Cup in the 2006-2007 season averaging 4.3 points and 3.2 rebounds in 12.7 minutes per game.

Mahinmi surprised everybody being selected as the 28th overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft by the San Antonio Spurs as he wasn’t among the 128 players listed in the league's draft guide. He joined the Austin Toros of the Spurs' affiliate in the NBA Development League. He led the Austin Toros to the D-League Finals averaged 17.1 points and 8.2 rebounds.

In 2010, Mahinmi signed with the Dallas Mavericks. Playing in Game 6 of the 2011 NBA Finals, Mahinmi collected a crucial offensive rebound in the closing seconds of the 3rd quarter before hitting a buzzer beater shot in the final quarter to extend the Mavericks lead. The Mavericks went onto win the game 105–95 and Mahinmi won his first NBA championship.

Mahinmi was traded to the Indiana Pacers in exchange for Darren Collison and Dahntay Jones in 2012. He scored a career-high 22 points along with 10 rebounds and 5 assists to help the Pacers win Game 4 of the 2016 first-round playoff series against the Toronto Raptors. He scored career-highs in points (9.3), rebounds (7.1), and blocks per game (1.1) in his final season with the Pacers. In the 2016 offseason, Mahinmi signed a four-year, $64 million contract with the Washington Wizards.