Former Wizards Teammate Shows Love to Bilal Coulibaly

Bilal Coulibaly has received praise from a former Washington Wizards teammate of his.

Dec 19, 2024; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Wizards guard Bilal Coulibaly (0) reacts after finishing an alley-oop dunk against the Charlotte Hornets in the fourth quarter at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The Washington Wizards are slowly building a team through their rebuild, which means many players on the roster will come and go.

The Wizards opted to make a decision over the offseason that saw Deni Avdija traded to the Portland Trail Blazers for Malcolm Brogdon and the draft rights to Bub Carrington.

Part of the reason why Avdija was traded is the fact that Bilal Coulibaly, last year's No. 7 overall pick, made a decent impact in his rookie season and proved to be worth more of an investment as the team's future small forward than Avdija. However, Coulibaly and Avdija became and remain very close.

Following the Wizards' latest win against the Charlotte Hornets, Coulibaly had a highlight-reel alley-oop that earned a lot of attention.

OH MY BILAL COULIBALY 🤯 pic.twitter.com/RjKjcYi6qD
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) December 20, 2024

The emphatic dunk earned some praise on social media from Avdija.

Deni Avdija on Bilal Coulibaly’s dunk

“Stop bro stop it” pic.twitter.com/4EB3MHRqlZ
— Neil Dalal (@NeilDalal96) December 20, 2024

Coulibaly has taken advantage of the role increase with Avdija no longer on the roster. The second-year pro from France is averaging 12.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game for the Wizards, all of which are an improvement from his rookie year.

Meanwhile, Avdija's numbers are pretty similar in his first season with the Blazers, averaging 12.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists.

Considering the fact that Coulibaly is younger and is making far less money compared to Avdija, it looks like the Wizards made a smart decision by sticking with youth over experience. It's only been 25 games played up until this point, but the fact that there is so much potential that has gone untapped with Coulibaly means that the sky is truly the limit from the Frenchman.

Coulibaly and the Wizards are back on the floor tonight as they take on the Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. ET.

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