Inside The Wizards

Wizards Guard Among Best Young Players

The Washington Wizards have one of the best young players in the NBA.

Jeremy Brener

Dec 3, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) drives to the basket against Washington Wizards guard Bilal Coulibaly (0) during the second half at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
Dec 3, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) drives to the basket against Washington Wizards guard Bilal Coulibaly (0) during the second half at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
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The Washington Wizards aren't enjoying it now, but they have reasons to be optimistic about their future.

A big reason for that has been the development of second-year pro Bilal Coulibaly, who was named to ESPN's 25 Under 25 list.

"Coulibaly was the other draft prospect alongside Victor Wembanyama two years ago in France, but Coulibaly's combination of length and explosiveness made him the No. 7 pick in the 2023 draft by Washington. After playing last season at 19 (and looking every bit his age), Coulibaly has made real strides on offense, including improving his field goal percentage from 43.5% to 48.2%. If he continues to develop in the same manner, he could easily make leaps up this list in future campaigns," ESPN insider Tim Bontemps writes.

Coulibaly, 20, is averaging 12.3 points per game so far this season for the Wizards. That's up from his 8.4 points per game average from his rookie season, but down from where he was towards the beginning of the year.

Coulibaly is simply adjusting to what is being shown in front of him, and that is okay for the Wizards. The franchise has time to get Coulibaly acclimated and he will eventually figure out how to perform at a high level on a consistent basis. Part of that process means getting better players on the court alongside him, and that will likely happen over the course of the next several drafts if the Wizards continue to be one of the worst teams in the league.

Coulibaly and the Wizards are back in action tonight as they begin a three-game stretch at home that starts when they play Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and the Dallas Mavericks. Tipoff for the game is set for 7 p.m. ET insider Capital One Arena.

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Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

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