Wizards’ Path to Negotiating Bilal Coulibaly Extension Just Got Clearer

Despite the proven patience that's accompanied the Washington Wizards' no-nonsense approach to the business side of basketball, the franchise hasn't made the outside world wait on many of their biggest decisions this summer.

They could only do so much to shield themselves from the rumor-filled internet regarding their draft preferences, especially considering their place atop the picking order and AJ Dybantsa's unavoidable, irresistible hype train. Beyond that, Washington wasted no time in scooping Trae Young out of his brief free agency foray, and gave the outside world minimal time to ponder Anthony Davis' own future - at least, for now. The parties are expected to resume discussions regarding their joint future, but everyone's presently focused on seeing how the team's roster performs out of the gate before making any other more long-term commitments.

Unlike that looming, Davis-shaped guillotine threatening to limit Washington's spending freedom through the next half-decade, Bilal Coulibaly's own extension dilemma more closely resembles the standard wait-and-see period that precedes second contracts. A young, still unproven role player won't require nearly as much to appease, and the tightrope the front office is straddling between upcoming deadlines and Coulibaly's financial valuation gained some much-needed clarity this week.

Amen Thompson got PAID 💰

The deal also includes a 10% trade kicker, sources tell @ShamsCharania. pic.twitter.com/OTBAq2R5X1
— ESPN (@espn) September 3, 2026

Amen Thompson, Coulibaly's fellow 2023 NBA Draft classmate, signed a five-year deal that's set to keep the wing with the Houston Rockets through the 2031-32 season. And unlike the San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama investment, the Thompson deal provides the Wizards with a more applicable scale to measure their own predicament against.

How Many Meaningful Similarities Between Prospects Can We Point To?

Wembanyama's already secured a unanimously-won Defensive Player of the Year award and last spring's Western Conference Finals MVP for his Finals-appearing effort, completely differentiating him from anyone else entering year No. 4. Thompson, conversely, more closely-resembles Coulibaly from physical and slow-burn developmental perspectives.

Selected just three picks apart in the top half of their class' lottery, Thompson won considerably-more appeal than his similarly-defensively-inclined disruptor for his top 1% athleticism and playmaking talent, though neither enjoyed the smoothest entrances to the NBA. The creaky-shooting Coulibaly's 31.3% career 3-point hit rate never scraped Thompson's 21.9% depths, but Coulibaly also never flashed the consistent two-way impact that Thompson embraced in growing into an integral starter on back-to-back playoff teams.

Amen Thompson will either go down as the greatest role player of all time or be a perennial All-Star. What do you think? pic.twitter.com/FEOVWtIJrV https://t.co/SAOaTPDolK
— Role Player Performances (@BenchHighlights) September 3, 2026

It's worth noting that Coulibaly's never had the chance to perform in a must-watch setting, as he served as the inaugural prospect of the Wizards' rebuild three years ago. All Washington's done since attempting to develop their rangy guard has been continually bottom out in the name of bolstered draft odds, winning assets they've spun into a now-deep rotation of hand-picked talents.

Granted, Thompson's also produced more statistically while putting himself in superior positions to succeed. Coulibaly's biggest believers will point to his strong close to the previous season, where he finally showed some initiative by confidently attacking and shooting as a default lead option, but that run accounted for his first on-court April appearances since he moved to D.C.

Thompson, meanwhile, led last year's league in total minutes while undertaking lead energizer and platoon point guard responsibilities while attempting to make the best of a messy Houston situation. Even if only one of these teams has the rights to Kevin Durant and the playoff aspirations he motivates, Thompson had his own expectations to step up into, and his 18.3 points per game simply dwarfs anything Coulibaly did last year.

Washington Wizards Guard Bilal Coulibaly — Mar 27, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Washington Wizards guard Bilal Coulibaly (0) dribbles against the Golden State Warriors during the first quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

This is where we have to inject patience into our perspectives. Coulibaly was never considered within the same talent tier as Thompson, and he's seemed more in need of a structured offense than just about any young Wizard. The Frenchman's had to wait quite a long time for playmakers and scorers talented enough to seize the on-ball reps that fell into Coulibaly's lap at earlier points, at long last getting to enjoy a simpler 3&D role in complimenting Young, Davis and Dybantsa.

Back to Thompson's fiscal assessment. Value is exponentially weighted in the NBA, and the $41.6 million he's expecting on an average annual basis shows the clear separation between he and someone like Coulibaly, who isn't even projected to start on the still-theoretical 2026-27 Wizards.

Based on responses from Wizards fans, it appears the fanbase prefers this starting lineup for opening night:

Trae Young
AJ Dybantsa
Kyshawn George
Anthony Davis
Alex Sarr pic.twitter.com/Ea8vqOBtz1
— Greg Finberg (@GregFinberg) August 31, 2026

Some optimistic Wizards fans have projected his making up to somewhere in the mid-20 million range through the rest of the decade, but he's realistically looking at something closer to $15-20 million. He, too, has put in respectable time alongside some lean rosters, but his lack of a comparable All-Star ceiling will be sure to hold he and his agency back from cashing in on this level.

Luckily, Washington still has plenty of time to find a number that's somewhere between considerate to their longtime prospect and an abject bargain. They have until the start of the coming regular season to come to an agreement before conversations are paused through the scheduled slate of games, wherein he'll head to restricted free agency in the summer of '27 should a stalemate find its way to the negotiating table.

That leaves the Wizards with over a month to work with, and judging by this recent announcement, he's unlikely to meaningfully dent the Wizards' future cap sheet either way.

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