Wizards' Bilal Coulibaly Has Golden Opportunity

Bilal Coulibaly can grow a lot for the Washington Wizards in the second half of the season.

Feb 8, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Wizards guard Bilal Coulibaly (0) takes a shot during the second half against the Atlanta Hawks at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images | Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

The Washington Wizards have moved past the trade deadline, and they can now move even more forward with their youthful core.

One member who benefits from these trades more than the others is second-year pro Bilal Coulibaly. HoopsHype writer Mike Shearer believes that the Wizards will give Coulibaly the ball more with Kyle Kuzma no longer on the roster.

"The Wizards are, without question, the worst team in the league, but that’s where they expected to be, given the overwhelming youth on the roster. While it’s hard to project just how good their young guys will eventually become, moving on from Kyle Kuzma (and, to a lesser extent, Jonas Valanciunas) will certainly open up more opportunities for them to test their boundaries," Shearer writes.

"I’ll be monitoring Bilal Coulibaly‘s performance for the rest of the season. In Kuzma’s absence, he’s generally taken on a far greater usage burden."

Coulibaly, 20, is averaging 12.6 points per game so far this season, and he could see that number go up in the second half of the year.

The Wizards view Coulibaly as an offensive creator, but he came into the league with an established defensive game, which has been his bread and butter so far in his career.

While Coulibaly will always be viewed as a defensive specialist, the Wizards hope that they can unlock his offensive game because it will make him that all-around player Washington needs in order to succeed.

Coulibaly is now heading to the All-Star break in San Francisco, where he is expected to compete in tomorrow's Rising Stars Challenge on Team Mitch Richmond alongside his teammate Bub Carrington, Portland Trail Blazers guard Scoot Henderson, his teammate Toumani Camara, New Orleans Pelicans rookie center Yves Missi and second-year twins Amen and Ausar Thompson.

Make sure you bookmark Washington Wizards on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!