Inside The Wizards

Wizards' Bilal Coulibaly Getting Aggressive

Bilal Coulibaly is growing in his approach for the Washington Wizards.

Jeremy Brener

Dec 13, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Washington Wizards guard Bilal Coulibaly (0) dunks during the first half against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
Dec 13, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Washington Wizards guard Bilal Coulibaly (0) dunks during the first half against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
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Washington Wizards second-year guard Bilal Coulibaly is growing each and every game for the team.

Over the course of the first 24 games of the season, there has been a massive difference between where he was at the start of the year and now, especially when it comes to his aggressiveness.

Wizards coach Brian Keefe pointed out Coulibaly's growth when it comes to his style of play.

“I love his aggressiveness," Keefe said via The Athletic insider Josh Robbins. "He’s our No. 1 driver. He drives the ball in the paint."

While Keefe is impressed with Coulibaly, that doesn't mean the concerns with his game go out the window.

"The only thing I’m concerned about with Bilal (is) this is the second game in a row (with low) free-throw attempts," Keefe said via Robbins. "He did not take a free throw tonight. We took one free throw in the first half. We took just as many shots in the paint at the rim as they did, and that’s actually not their game. We had one. They had 16. We’re going to continue to (say) to Bilal to put his head down and get to the rim. He will eventually get that, but something has to change.”

Coulibaly now has direction going into his next stage of growth as a creator, and if he can find a way to draw fouls at a higher rate, he could take that next step towards becoming the player the Wizards envisioned him to be when they drafted him with the No. 7 overall pick last year.

Coulibaly and the Wizards will recover and rest for three days before facing off against the Charlotte Hornets at home on Thursday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET inside 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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