ESPN: Thunder traveled overseas to watch Bilal Coulibaly ahead of 2023 NBA draft
The 2023 NBA draft is a little over a week away, which means the Oklahoma City Thunder will soon add another lottery talent to their young roster.
A possibility at No. 12 that’s picked up steam over the last couple of weeks is Metropolitan 92 forward Bilal Coulibaly. The 18-year-old has quickly risen up in draft boards and is expected to be a lottery pick.
It seems like the Thunder are interested in him too. In their latest mock draft, ESPN draft experts Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo reported that the Thunder sent decision-makers Monaco this week to watch Coulibaly live in the Pro A finals.
“Despite his unavailability to work out for teams, his stock appears to be in a good place. The Jazz and Thunder both sent decision-makers to Monaco this week to take another look at Coulibaly, where he bounced back from a difficult first game in the Pro A finals with a strong performance in Game 2. “
This adds juice to the report that Thunder general manager Sam Presti was reportedly in France recently to also watch Coulibaly live in person.
With his team still playing games this late in the draft process, Coulibaly hasn’t been available to work out for teams. That hasn’t stopped his stock to rise though as the league continues to garner interest in him.
