Georges Niang back from Nike Skills Academy with more experience and stitches

WEST DES MOINES - Georges Niang, sporting four fresh stitches near the corner of his right eye, walked down the steps into the Valley Southwoods gymnasium at the YMCA Capital City League to a throng of children awaiting pictures and autographs.

The session with fans went by without mention of the small cut, which was a result of an elbow from Gonzaga's Kyle Wiltjer during the weekend. And luckily for Niang, the gash paled in comparison to his famous wound in the 2014 Big 12 tournament.

'He's pretty fast with his elbows,” Niang said. 'I wouldn't say (he's fast on his) feet, but he caught me with an elbow. It was an accident, but we're good buddies so he made sure I was all right after that.

'I've got to keep my right eye out of the danger zone.”

The collision could be considered the only bump in the road for Niang during his stay at the Nike Basketball Academy in Los Angeles during the weekend. The Iowa State senior forward was one of 20 college players invited to the camp and able to interact with NBA professionals.

Getting to play alongside pros and college players had Niang's mind trying to absorb as much knowledge as he could in a short amount of time.

'They're the best players in the world so if I can learn anything from them, like little tricks of the trade and how the game works and life lessons, I'm definitely going to listen and even ask them questions,” Niang said. 'Nike does a great job of hosting that event.”

It was the first year for the Nike Basketball Academy, which combined three of the company's skills academies into one event. For Niang, it was important to test himself against competition the Cyclones don't necessarily see regularly.

'It's awesome for Iowa State to have a player out there,” Iowa State Coach Steve Prohm said last week. 'But this is a chance for him to showcase his skills and play in front of a lot of really important people and really start to foster those relationships.”

Some of those relationships Niang has fostered are with players he sees a lot. Oklahoma senior Buddy Hield and Texas junior Isaiah Taylor were among those Niang interacted with the most.

Niang had a familiar experience with the same group when he attended the LeBron James Skills Academy a year ago and said continuing to build relationships with other players has certainly benefited him.

'It's always good when you see guys from your conference there so you know you're playing against some of the best competition night-in and night-out in your conference,” Niang said. 'I wish them nothing but the best, but it was cool because a lot of us were on the same teams when we were out there, but during the season we're not so much of friends.”

What he saw and heard from the pros during the weekend could maybe even take Niang's heavy gym presence to another level.

Niang hasn't paid too much attention to NBA talk. He's focused on the things he can affect, and that lingered in his mind throughout his stay in Los Angeles.

'I have confidence in myself,” he said. 'Those people are my greatest motivators and hopefully one day I'll be able to be in a position where I can prove them wrong. That's why I work every day like I do.”

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