Former Mustang Kobe Sanders Selected 50th by Knicks; Traded to Clippers
6/26/2025 8:07:00 PM | Men's Basketball
SAN LUIS OBISPO – Guard Kobe Sanders became just the second all-time NBA Draft pick in Cal Poly men’s basketball history Thursday evening with the former Mustang standout selected 50th overall by the New York Knicks before being traded to the Los Angeles Clippers.
From the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, Sanders was taken with the 20th pick of the second round by New York before being immediately traded to the Clippers (report via NBA).
A four-year letterwinner for Cal Poly (2020-24) who became just the 26th player in program history to reach 1,000 career points, Sanders finished his collegiate career as a grad transfer at Nevada last season where he started 32 of 33 games and averaged 15.8 points per appearance.
Sanders earned All-Big West honorable mention recognition for his 2023-24 senior season at Cal Poly in which he averaged 19.6 points per game, reached double-digit scoring figures in all 29 appearances and finished with 568 points – the fourth highest single season total in program history. Shooting 87.4 percent from the free throw line as a senior, his 174 free throws two years ago rank as the second highest single season figure.
In Cal Poly program history, Sanders ranks 25th with 1,008 career points and 14th with 208 assists. His 17-for-17 free throw performance against CSUN on Dec. 28, 2023 set a new program record for single game free throw percentage.
Sanders has the opportunity to become the first former Mustang to play in the NBA since guard David Nwaba, who appeared for the Los Angeles Lakers (2017), Chicago (2017-18), Cleveland (2018-19), Brooklyn (2019-20) and Houston (2020-22) during his six-year career. Also Cal Poly’s first G League entry, Nwaba appeared for the Los Angeles D-Fenders (2016-17) and Motor City Cruise (2022-23) before moving overseas.
Sanders is the first and only NBA Draft pick in Cal Poly history after guard Lewis Cohen was selected 199th overall in the 10th round in 1978 by the Phoenix Suns.
Congratulation to our guy Kobe Sanders!
— Cal Poly Men’s Basketball (@calpolymbb) June 27, 2025
Kobe Sanders is coming back to California after being drafted by the @nyknicks and traded to the @laclippers #RideHigh pic.twitter.com/xigYquhg1P
