Wizards have a defensive monster hiding in plain sight

The Washington Wizards may have a rising star on their hands who few saw coming in Bilal Coulibaly. Critical questions persist in regard to his jump shot, but the progress he's made in multiple phases of the game is impossible to overlook.

One area in which Coulibaly is quietly making remarkable strides is on the defensive end of the floor—where he's flashed legitimate lockdown potential.

Coulibaly, 21, is coming off of a season in which he averaged 12.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.5 offensive boards, 3.4 assists, 1.3 steals, 0.7 blocks, and 1.1 three-point field goals made per game. He shot just 28.1 percent from the field, but the all-around potential of his game was on full display.

Perhaps his most underrated area of brilliance was his on-ball defense—with NBA University revealing that Coulibaly locked Jayson Tatum down across 115 possessions in 2024-25.

Tatum posted a dreadful True Shooting Percentage of just 36.8 percent against Coulibaly in 2024-25—the second-lowest he amassed against any defender in the top 15 of possessions played against him.

Bilal Couliably shut Jayson Tatum down in 2024-25, flashed elite potential

For perspective: Tatum finished the 2024-25 season averaging 26.8 points per game with a True Shooting Percentage of 58.2. In other words: Tatum's TS% decreased by 19.4 percent simply because of the fact that Coulibaly was the primary defender.

Tatum isn't the only All-Star whom the Wizards standout shut down, as Trae Young shot just 5-of-28 when defended by Coulibaly in 2024-25, and Stephen Curry went 7-of-18—including an uncharacteristically poor 3-of-12 from beyond the arc.

On the season, opponents shot 1.8 percent worse from the field when Coulibaly was the primary defender. That includes a decline of 4.9 percent on three-point field goals and 3.2 percent within six feet of the rim.

The versatility to not only contest and deter long jumpers, but to stay with his man and prevent them from converting with efficiency inside is undeniably intriguing.

Standing at 6'8" with a wingspan that has been listed at 7'2", Coulibaly has the capacity for dominance from a physical perspective alone. What he's displayed in just two NBA seasons on a losing team, however, is a desire to take on difficult assignments.

With the quickness to stay in front of guards, the tenacity to fight over screens, and the length to disrupt passing lanes, Coulibaly has genuine All-Defense potential.

He'll need to improve his jumper to maximize his potential and ensure that minutes remain available to him. In the meantime, Coulibaly has all of the makings of a defensive anchor who can help transform the Wizards into a competitive team in the Eastern Conference.

Coulibaly may not be a household name for his defense, but the results he's producing suggest he's on the fast track to elite status as a defender.