AURORA — In its first showcase event, Denver Prep Academy was without two of its marquee stars. And it appears both are gone for good.
DPA has lost its second star basketball player this week, with four-star recruit Assane Diop no longer a member of the team.
Diop, , was absent from DPA’s tournament event Friday night at Aurora Central as part of the Grind Session. Baye Fall, the nation’s top center prospect for the Class of 2023, was dismissed from the program earlier in the week, according to a DPA statement.
DPA co-founder Greg Willis, hired as the school’s director of recruiting and scouting, is also no longer part of DPA’s leadership team or . His family hosts Fall and Diop — both Senegal natives pursuing basketball dreams in the U.S.
“Greg Willis is the handler for (Fall and Diop). He decided to pull them once we had dismissed Baye,” DPA head coach Ray Valdez told The Denver Post. “Thatap official.”
Diop led Belleview Christian (1A) to a state championship as a sophomore. He enrolled at DPA for his junior season and averaged 8.2 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists over 13 games in the Grind Session. Fall and Diop are taking an unofficial visit to Arkansas’ basketball program on Saturday, .
On Friday night, DPA lost 99-89 to Donda Academy, the basketball prep school founded by Kanye West. DPA was led by sophomore guard Mikey Lewis with 30 points and nine rebounds.
This story has been changed to reflect that Ray Valdez is Denver Prep Academy's head coach, not Greg Willis, as was originally stated in the story.
