Bilal Coulibaly

[closg00]

Whatever Ariza shot 37.7 on long 2s as a rookie and 37.6% in his 3rd season. He was 35% for his career. He shot them more more and shot them better than Bilal.

For the past two seasons combined Bilal is 34.6% from 3-10 feet, 25.3% from 10-16 feet and 28.3% from 16 feet to the 3 point line. That is awful and doesnt give a lot of hope that he will be a good shooter, which is pretty much required for wings in the league now.

It looks like he can't make up his mind whether he wants to shoot a jumper or a set shot from 3. From midrange he definitely tries to shoot a jumper and it looks awful.

Nobody except post up players and point guards with good floaters shoot well from 3-10 feet and 10-16 feet, tontoz. It's No Man's Land. Those shots are always contested. Rookie Bradley Beal shot 34.4% from 3-10 feet and 27.7% from 10-16 feet.

I will reiterate, Bilal shoots 75% from the FT line. His shot is not broken. He'll probably never be a movement shooter, but he'll be adequate as a catch-and-shoot 3-point shooter.

He doesn't need to shoot well from 3-16 feet, but shooting as badly as he does calls into question his upside as a player.

Instead of comparing him to guys much older lets compare him to his peers, athletic wings that struggle with shooting.

For his career Jayden McDaniels shoots 44% from 3-10 feet, 50% from 10-16 feet.

For his career Amen Thompson shoots 47% from 3-10 feet, 44% from 10-16 feet.

Bilal is worse than them by far. There are so many wings coming into the league that can shoot i have no problem cutting bait with one that cant.

We are a bad team that has been significantly worse with Bilal on the floor. If he doesn't show dramatic improvement in his shooting in the upcoming season i would have no problem moving off him.

On this point, with the Org bringing-in all of these Wing prospects, I would not be surprised to see the FO let the deadline pass to exercise the team option on Bilal for 26/27 season, let them all fight it out.

[NatP4]

ZERO chance that happens. Bilal is a step above the rest.

These are some really strange takes. Bilal is 20. We just watched Deni Avdija not become a competent offensive player until his 4th season at age 23.

McDaniels plays on a contending team and turns 25 years old in September. Amen plays on a contending team and turns 23 in January.

This is a conversation for 2-3 years from now.

[Kanyewest]

Since February 1st, Bilal was shooting 33% from 3. Perhaps if his season didn't end prematurely, he could have raised his 3 point percentage. Either way, he still has to put in the work but it is not out of the realm of possibility he can improve- (although he could also go the Troy Brown route). Guys like Jayden McDaniels and Amen Thompson play on playoff caliber teams so it is a bit like comparing apples to oranges.

[Benjammin]

It's a big year for Bilal. I hope he takes a big step forward. If he doesn't all hope isn't lost, but it would be disappointing.

Sent from my Pixel 9 Pro XL using Tapatalk

[tontoz]

ZERO chance that happens. Bilal is a step above the rest.

These are some really strange takes. Bilal is 20. We just watched Deni Avdija not become a competent offensive player until his 4th season at age 23.

McDaniels plays on a contending team and turns 25 years old in September. Amen plays on a contending team and turns 23 in January.

This is a conversation for 2-3 years from now.

Deni's big problem was a lack of aggression. He just wouldnt try to do anything with the ball most of the time. Once he upped his aggression his production followed.

Over his first two seasons Deni shot 47% from 3-10 feet, over 12% better than Bilal. Roughly 25% of his shots were from this area.

[tontoz]

Since February 1st, Bilal was shooting 33% from 3. Perhaps if his season didn't end prematurely, he could have raised his 3 point percentage. Either way, he still has to put in the work but it is not out of the realm of possibility he can improve- (although he could also go the Troy Brown route). Guys like Jayden McDaniels and Amen Thompson play on playoff caliber teams so it is a bit like comparing apples to oranges.

LOL Wut? Both Houston and Minny were strong on defense. They both had poor spacing. That makes the lane more crowded.

Houston was 20th in offense, Minny 10th. I seriously doubt that made it easier for them to shoot from 3-16 feet.

[NatP4]

Deni entered the league on a 34/35 win playoff team with Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook and was older than Coulibaly.

[tontoz]

Deni entered the league on a 34/35 win playoff team with Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook and was older than Coulibaly.

Bub shot 55% from 10-16 feet. If the Wizards were a .500 team would he have shot 10% better?

[Kanyewest]

Deni entered the league on a 34/35 win playoff team with Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook and was older than Coulibaly.

Bub shot 55% from 10-16 feet last year. If the Wizards were a .500 team would he have shot 10% better?

I believe there are pros and cons of developing with a plus 500 team versus developing as one of the worst teams in the NBA. The minus is that a player's efficiency would be lower . However, some players could eventually flourish and expand their capabilities with more playing time (see Deni)

To answer your question. No. but I do believe that Bub would be slightly better from all areas of the field as he only had a 51.6 TS% which is below average for a point guard. Specifically, I believe Bub would probably see his biggest improvement from 3 point range (shot only 31%) perhaps from a more steady diet of catch shoot 3s. Maybe Bub would work on that aspect of his game more as opposed to his midrange game. That being said, Bub is getting plenty of opportunity to develop along with Bilal

If you were to insert Bub on let's say the Denver Nuggets, Houston, or Minnesota do you think he would shoot at 51.4% or do you think it would rise?

Trevor Ariza prior to coming to the Wizards had 3 seasons in a row where he had a TS% of under 50%. I would say this is because of context because Ariza was asked to be the primary option. He played a partial season with Wall and it jumped to 53%. After playing with Wall a full season in 2013-14, his TS% jumped all the way up to 59%. Ariza's efficiency appeared to be strongly correlated to whether or not he played alongside all star caliber players. The same could be true for a number of players on the Wizards but on the plus side perhaps we can find out whether the young guys can carry the load, more than Trevor Ariza did in his career anyways.

[Kanyewest]

Since February 1st, Bilal was shooting 33% from 3. Perhaps if his season didn't end prematurely, he could have raised his 3 point percentage. Either way, he still has to put in the work but it is not out of the realm of possibility he can improve- (although he could also go the Troy Brown route). Guys like Jayden McDaniels and Amen Thompson play on playoff caliber teams so it is a bit like comparing apples to oranges.

LOL Wut? Both Houston and Minny were strong on defense. They both had poor spacing. That makes the lane more crowded.

Houston was 20th in offense, Minny 10th. I seriously doubt that made it easier for them to shoot from 3-16 feet.

Good point on Houston not being a good offense. Although remind me where the Wizards ranked?

[tontoz]

Since February 1st, Bilal was shooting 33% from 3. Perhaps if his season didn't end prematurely, he could have raised his 3 point percentage. Either way, he still has to put in the work but it is not out of the realm of possibility he can improve- (although he could also go the Troy Brown route). Guys like Jayden McDaniels and Amen Thompson play on playoff caliber teams so it is a bit like comparing apples to oranges.

LOL Wut? Both Houston and Minny were strong on defense. They both had poor spacing. That makes the lane more crowded.

Houston was 20th in offense, Minny 10th. I seriously doubt that made it easier for them to shoot from 3-16 feet.

Good point on Houston not being a good offense. Although remind me where the Wizards ranked?

Yeah we were the worst but that didn't stop Poole from having a good shooting season. JC had a career best shooting season.

I think people are just looking for excuses for Bilal's suckage.

[Kanyewest]

LOL Wut? Both Houston and Minny were strong on defense. They both had poor spacing. That makes the lane more crowded.

Houston was 20th in offense, Minny 10th. I seriously doubt that made it easier for them to shoot from 3-16 feet.

Good point on Houston not being a good offense. Although remind me where the Wizards ranked?

Yeah we were the worst but that didn't stop Poole from having a good shooting season.

I'm also seeing different numbers on offensive efficiency based on offensive rating. Would it be more accurate to use this than raw scoring (asking for clarification)?

When looking at adjusted offensive rating- I see the Timberwolves as 8th, the Rockets as 15, and the Wizards at 30. Only 1.1 points separate the Timberwolves and Rockets. The Wizards are separated by the Rockets by 8 points by adjusted offensive rating.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_2025_ratings.html

[tontoz]

Good point on Houston not being a good offense. Although remind me where the Wizards ranked?

Yeah we were the worst but that didn't stop Poole from having a good shooting season.

I'm also seeing different numbers on offensive efficiency based on offensive rating. Would it be more accurate to use this than raw scoring (asking for clarification)?

When looking at adjusted offensive rating- I see the Timberwolves as 8th, the Rockets as 15, and the Wizards at 30. Only 1.1 points separate the Timberwolves and Rockets. The Wizards are separated by the Rockets by 8 points by adjusted offensive rating.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_2025_ratings.html

I was looking strictly at points per 100 possessions on ESPNs hollinger stats.

[WallToWall]

Two things I will want to see Bilal improve prior to the start of the season:
1. a quicker release on his shots
2. aggressiveness on the boards.

[payitforward]

I'm ... seeing different numbers on offensive efficiency based on offensive rating. Would it be more accurate to use this than raw scoring (asking for clarification)?

Start with Total Scoring percentage, which takes both shooting & FTs into account.
https://captaincalculator.com/sports/basketball/true-shooting-percentage-calculator/

[prime1time]

Whatever Ariza shot 37.7 on long 2s as a rookie and 37.6% in his 3rd season. He was 35% for his career. He shot them more more and shot them better than Bilal.

For the past two seasons combined Bilal is 34.6% from 3-10 feet, 25.3% from 10-16 feet and 28.3% from 16 feet to the 3 point line. That is awful and doesnt give a lot of hope that he will be a good shooter, which is pretty much required for wings in the league now.

It looks like he can't make up his mind whether he wants to shoot a jumper or a set shot from 3. From midrange he definitely tries to shoot a jumper and it looks awful.

Nobody except post up players and point guards with good floaters shoot well from 3-10 feet and 10-16 feet, tontoz. It's No Man's Land. Those shots are always contested. Rookie Bradley Beal shot 34.4% from 3-10 feet and 27.7% from 10-16 feet.

I will reiterate, Bilal shoots 75% from the FT line. His shot is not broken. He'll probably never be a movement shooter, but he'll be adequate as a catch-and-shoot 3-point shooter.

He doesn't need to shoot well from 3-16 feet, but shooting as badly as he does calls into question his upside as a player.

Instead of comparing him to guys much older lets compare him to his peers, athletic wings that struggle with shooting.

For his career Jayden McDaniels shoots 44% from 3-10 feet, 50% from 10-16 feet.

For his career Amen Thompson shoots 47% from 3-10 feet, 44% from 10-16 feet.

Bilal is worse than them by far. There are so many wings coming into the league that can shoot i have no problem cutting bait with one that cant.

We are a bad team that has been significantly worse with Bilal on the floor. If he doesn't show dramatic improvement in his shooting in the upcoming season i would have no problem moving off him.

It's always fascinating reading people's opinions online. What's the argument for using fg% from 3-10 and 10-16 feet to measure shooting? Why is this a more valuable measure of shooting potential than 3-point shooting and ft%? Amen Thompson is a career 22% 3-point shooter and a career 68% free throw shooter. Why should I believe that he has more shooting potential than Bilal?

I think it's a real mistake to use Bilal's 10-16 fg% against him. For one it's the worst shot in basketball. For two he rarely ever takes them. His rookie year they accounted for 3.5% of his attempts. His second year they accounted for 9.6%. Because he rarely takes them, it's likely that he's forced to take them in bad situations also skewing the percentages. As far as Amen Thompson's shooting percentage from 10-16 feet, this also seems silly. Career wise those shots account for only 8% of his shot attempts.

[prime1time]

Nobody except post up players and point guards with good floaters shoot well from 3-10 feet and 10-16 feet, tontoz. It's No Man's Land. Those shots are always contested. Rookie Bradley Beal shot 34.4% from 3-10 feet and 27.7% from 10-16 feet.

I will reiterate, Bilal shoots 75% from the FT line. His shot is not broken. He'll probably never be a movement shooter, but he'll be adequate as a catch-and-shoot 3-point shooter.

He doesn't need to shoot well from 3-16 feet, but shooting as badly as he does calls into question his upside as a player.

Instead of comparing him to guys much older lets compare him to his peers, athletic wings that struggle with shooting.

For his career Jayden McDaniels shoots 44% from 3-10 feet, 50% from 10-16 feet.

For his career Amen Thompson shoots 47% from 3-10 feet, 44% from 10-16 feet.

Bilal is worse than them by far. There are so many wings coming into the league that can shoot i have no problem cutting bait with one that cant.

We are a bad team that has been significantly worse with Bilal on the floor. If he doesn't show dramatic improvement in his shooting in the upcoming season i would have no problem moving off him.

It's always fascinating reading people's opinions online. What's the argument for using fg% from 3-10 and 10-16 feet to measure shooting? Why is this a more valuable measure of shooting potential than 3-point shooting and ft%? Amen Thompson is a career 22% 3-point shooter and a career 68% free throw shooter. Why should I believe that he has more shooting potential than Bilal?

I think it's a real mistake to use Bilal's 10-16 fg% against him. For one it's the worst shot in basketball. For two he rarely ever takes them. His rookie year they accounted for 3.5% of his attempts. His second year they accounted for 9.6%. Because he rarely takes them, it's likely that he's forced to take them in bad situations also skewing the percentages. As far as Amen Thompson's shooting percentage from 10-16 feet, this also seems silly. Career wise those shots account for only 8% of his shot attempts.

In a roundabout way, I do think you are hitting on a major question mark of Bilal's game but the way you phrased it doesn't follow. In my opinion, having a high fg% in the 3-16 feet range isn't indicative of shooting potential but rather basketball feel. 16 feet and in is a tough place to operate. More bodies, help defenders, less space. In addition, the coach never really wants you to settle for shots in that area. Bilal's goal should be to shoot 3s and attack the rim. Once he does that effectively - something that he might never do - then we can talk about being better in that range.

You through out the Jaden McDaniels comparison. Bilal averaged 3.4 assists a game last year. More than McDaniels has ever done in his career. I find it interesting that you didn't bring that up. As far as Thompson goes, his high shooting percentage happens because the majority of his shots are between 0-3 feet and he makes those at 73.9% career rate. He attempts 3-16 feet way less, and basically he doesn't shoot 3's at all. When we drafted Bilal we knew he was raw and now people are saying we should move on from him. Why should we move on from him? Are there better players that we can easily add? Would those players not need development? Should we move on from him regardless of how much he would cost? Jaden McDaniels signed a 5 year 136 million dollar contract. And Thompson is on track to also get a massive contract. Moving on from Bilal would be one of the worst decisions this organization has made. And if it happens it reflects more on the organization than it does on Bilal.

[prime1time]

LOL Wut? Both Houston and Minny were strong on defense. They both had poor spacing. That makes the lane more crowded.

Houston was 20th in offense, Minny 10th. I seriously doubt that made it easier for them to shoot from 3-16 feet.

Good point on Houston not being a good offense. Although remind me where the Wizards ranked?

Yeah we were the worst but that didn't stop Poole from having a good shooting season. JC had a career best shooting season.

I think people are just looking for excuses for Bilal's suckage.

Maybe if we're lucky they'll cut Bilal tonight

[tontoz]

Maybe if we're lucky they'll cut Bilal tonight

The point is that Bilal isn't just a bad shooter from 3, he is a bad shooter from everywhere outside 3 feet even when compared to his peers that struggle with shooting.

As far as Thompson goes, his high shooting percentage happens because the majority of his shots are between 0-3 feet and he makes those at 73.9% career rate. He attempts 3-16 feet way less

30% of Amen's shots are from 3 to 10 feet and he shot 47% on those shots compared to 34.6% for Bilal. In fact Amen actually took more shots in that range than Bilal did at the rim.

Of course Amen also got to the rim far more than Bilal because he is far more skilled with the ball.

Shooting is McDaniels weakness but he never shot as badly from 3 as Bilal did this past season. He also shoots way better from 3 to 16 feet.

Bilal could improve his shooting considerably and still be bad.

Why should we move on from him? Are there better players that we can easily add?

We don't need to add one. We already have one in Kyshawn. He had a dismal start but over the last few months showed that he is a skilled player.

Per 100 possessions we were 4.8 pts better with Kyshawn on the floor, 2.8 pts worse with Bilal.

[prime1time]

Maybe if we're lucky they'll cut Bilal tonight

The point is that Bilal isn't just a bad shooter from 3, he is a bad shooter from everywhere outside 3 feet even when compared to his peers that struggle with shooting.

As far as Thompson goes, his high shooting percentage happens because the majority of his shots are between 0-3 feet and he makes those at 73.9% career rate. He attempts 3-16 feet way less

30% of Amen's shots are from 3 to 10 feet and he shot 47% on those shots compared to 34.6% for Bilal. In fact Amen actually took more shots in that range than Bilal did at the rim.

Of course Amen also got to the rim far more than Bilal because he is far more skilled with the ball.

Shooting is McDaniels weakness but he never shot as badly from 3 as Bilal did this past season. He also shoots way better from 3 to 16 feet.

Bilal could improve his shooting considerably and still be bad.

Why should we move on from him? Are there better players that we can easily add?

We don't need to add one. We already have one in Kyshawn. He had a dismal start but over the last few months showed that he is a skilled player.
Per 100 possessions we were 4.8 pts better with Kyshawn on the floor, 2.8 pts worse with Bilal.

This doesn't make sense. Kyshawn shot 34.7% between 3-10 feet. 37% between 10-16 feet. In fact Kyshawn shot 37.2% from the field last year. Using your analysis we should cut both of them.