NBA Shutting Down G League Ignite Program

After its launch in 2020, the G League Ignite developmental program is officially being shut down due to basketball’s changing landscape.

NBA G League Fall Invitational - Perth Wildcats v G League Ignite / Ethan Miller/GettyImages

Late last week, NBA G League President Shareef Abdur-Rahim officially announced the league will be shutting down the Ignite after this season, signaling the end of a short-lived era for the developmental program.

Formed in 2020, the Ignite squad was designed to give elite draft prospects an alternative route to the NBA, different from college basketball or other professional leagues. The team offered a season purely for honing the craft of basketball, earning salary and endorsement income opposed to going through classes at university or going overseas.

In the team’s first three seasons, it developed 10 NBA players, including four top-10 picks in Scoot Henderson, Jalen Green, Jonathan Kuminga and Dyson Daniels.

This season, the team has top-10 hopefuls in Ron Holland and Matas Buzelis, two of the more highly-touted recruits in their class.

With the emergence of name, image and likeness in college basketball, the Ignite’s pay structure — coupled with the fact it didn’t necessarily raise the stock of many prospects — rendered it somewhat obsolete.

“Four years ago, we started Ignite to fill a void in the basketball landscape, and I’m proud of the contributions we were able to make to that ecosystem,” said Abdur-Rahim. “With the changing environment across youth and collegiate basketball, now is the right time to take this step.  I want to extend my sincere gratitude to general manager Anthony McClish, head coach Jason Hart and their staff and to each player who wore an Ignite jersey.  As ever, the G League’s commitment to developing top NBA talent and helping players achieve their NBA dreams is unwavering.”

Now, Overtime Elite — which yielded top picks in Amen and Ausar Thompson in the 2023 NBA Draft — is the top option in the US for prospects wanting to go straight to the pros.

The Ignite have four games remaining on their 2023-24 schedule.

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