How Bilal Coulibaly can help Wizards as a rookie
How Bilal Coulibaly can help Wizards as a rookie originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
It is not easy to project Bilal Coulibaly's exact role for this upcoming season, his rookie year in the NBA. The Wizards have depth at his position(s) and he's only 19 years old, yet as the seventh overall pick and the first pillar of a new direction for the organization, his development will naturally be prioritized.
Coulibaly is probably going to play quite a bit over the course of his first full season. Wizards' first-round picks have averaged 21.2 minutes per game over the past five years. That ranges from Troy Brown Jr. (14.0 mpg in 2018-19) to Rui Hachimura (30.1 mpg, 2019-20). While none of them offer a perfect precedent, it's fair to expect Coulibaly to fall somewhere in that range.
However much Coulibaly ends up playing as a rookie, here are some areas he may be able to help the Wizards sooner than later...
Deflections
Washington was 26th in the NBA last season in deflections per game (12.6), a stat that isn't always a foolproof sign of good defense, but an area head coach Wes Unseld Jr. has sought improvement in. The Wizards struggled in that category last year despite having Delon Wright, who was seventh in the NBA in deflections per game (3.2). The next two players on the list for the Wizards were Bradley Beal (1.9/g) and Jordan Goodwin (1.8) and they were each traded this summer to the Phoenix Suns.
Coulibaly may be able to help fill the void. He is a guard/wing with unusual length, boasting a reported 7-foot-2 wingspan. The Wizards haven't had many players (if any) with those dimensions on the wing in quite a while. Coulibaly also seems to have the timing and instincts to match. Whether it happens right away or not, Coulibaly could be uniquely disruptive in passing lanes as his career transpires.
Forcing turnovers
In addition to struggling with deflections, and on a related note, the Wizards were 29th out of 30 NBA teams in generating turnovers. Their opponents averaged 12.3 turnovers per game as the Wizards ranked 23rd in steals per game (6.8) and ninth in blocks per game (5.2). Their top shot-blocker, Kristaps Porzingis (1.5/g), is also now playing elsewhere in Boston.
One of Coulibaly's biggest strengths in the LNB Pro A League last year playing for the Metropolitans 92 was steals. He averaged 1.5 steals per-36 minutes, including 1.8 steals per-36 minutes in the playoffs. Interestingly enough, Coulibaly stood out more for his shot-blocking than his steals in the Las Vegas Summer League. In a small sample size of four games, he had two steals and nine blocks. There is reason to believe he can also help the Wizards with some rim-protection.
Transition scoring and defense
Where Coulibaly arguably stood out the most in Las Vegas was in the open court, both on offense and defense. That tracks with what his former teammate, and former Wizards big man, Anzejs Pasecniks said about him following the NBA Draft. Coulibaly is a blur baseline to baseline, can take the ball up the floor on his own and play well above the rim. We may find out early on that he is one of the more athletic players on the Wizards' roster.
Coulibaly is likely to be a threat to score on lobs and breakaway opportunities, plays where he will get rewarded for hustling down the floor to run with Tyus Jones, Jordan Poole and the Wizards' main ball-handlers. Defensively, his length could help him prevent kick-ahead passes. He also displayed a knack for chase-down blocks in Las Vegas.
