One Met can hide another. After Victor Wembanyama, chosen in first position for the 2023 Draft, another Boulogne-Levallois player was selected in the Top 10, Bilal Coulibaly. Expected around tenth place, a little before, a little after, the 18-year-old French winger was called up to seventh position to join the Pacers. Except that the person concerned will never set foot in Indiana. Moments before his selection, we learned, via Shams Charania (The Athletic / Stadium) and Adrian Wojnarowski (ESPN), that the Wizards recovered him by making a trade with the Indianapolis club. In recent days, some sources imagined that San Antonio could try to go up in the Draft in order to associate “Wemby” and Coulibaly with AT
The good news is that he will have playing time, that’s for sure… “They are rebuilding, I know that I will have a better place there, I will be able to integrate the team directly and that’s what I wanted, it’s a blessing. I had spoken with them when I had never had any contact with the Pacers. When I saw the cameras arrive, I wondered what was going on, ”he says on beIN SPORTS, he who only learned of his trade after being called by Adam Silver. “It happened very quickly. I heard children in the stands telling me that I was traded in Washington during an interview, ”he laughs. Such is the life of an NBA player…
In any case, Coulibaly’s rise is exceptional. At the start of the season, no one imagined him having such an impact within Vincent Collet’s team. And even less from number 7 in the Draft. Athletic, big defender, he has a lot of room for improvement. His averages over the season say nothing about the quality of the guy (4.9 pts, 3 rbs / game in 28 games, including 8 as a starter). He was shooting at 9.4 points and 3.2 rebounds in the play-offs (10 games, all in the five majors). But in the shadow of “Wemby”, difficult to express oneself to its full extent. “It’s been a dream since we were little for all French people. Experiencing it now, after such a fast season… It’s really nice!” he savors on beIN. And to continue: “Relief. So much has happened in such a short time that no one can understand… This is crazy stuff! Very happy, very proud. (…) When I watched the (Killian) Hayes Draft a few years ago, I thought to myself that I had to be above (smile)! We are finally equal (smile). Without “Wemby”, Coulibaly would indeed have become the highest drafted Frenchman.
