Washington Wizards: 3 remaining free agents to sign
By Cem Yolbulan
Hamidou Diallo
A career with an extremely similar career trajectory to Darius Bazley has been Hamidou Diallo’s. Like Bazley, Diallo started his career with the Oklahoma City Thunder, and despite having remarkable physical and athletic tools, hasn’t lived up to his potential so far.
A 6’5 swingman who can guard multiple positions, Diallo is as athletic as it gets. He is fast, strong, and relentless in attacking the rim. He is very adept at getting to the rim and finishing around the rim. He is a high-flying beast who is impossible to stop inside the paint.
Problems for Diallo start the moment he leaves the paint. He is a horrible shooter from all over the court. Not only are his 27% career three-point shooting and 62% career free-throw shooting accuracies among the worst in the league for his position, but his shot also looks completely broken.
The team that acquires him may want to completely repair his shot, changing the mechanics. This might be a tall task to accomplish for an almost 25-year-old player.
However, everything else with Diallo is so intriguing that he may be worth a flyer. He could play the small forward, a position the Wizards are lacking in depth, and provide much-needed athleticism.
It may never work out and Diallo may never learn to shoot, but it’s a low-risk, high-reward signing that the Wizards need to consider. For a minimum contract, you can do a lot worse than Hamidou Diallo.
