Bilal Coulibaly Continues to Impress Wizards

ORLANDO, Fla. — Washington Wizards forward Bilal Coulibaly may not be stuffing the stat sheet every night, but he is continuing to prove why he is a good investment for the franchise in the long run.

Coulibaly scored just 11 points in 35 minutes during the team's most recent loss to the Orlando Magic, but Wizards head coach Brian Keefe was happy with what he was able to do.

“I actually thought he played a really good game," Keefe said of Coulibaly.

"First half was terrific. Defense was terrific. Got downhill a little bit. The whole team really struggled in the second half, but I liked his attacking. Got to the free throw line. He just missed a couple of easy layups that probably would have made this game look better, but that was a lot of our guys. We just missed some chippies around the rim. Some open threes that we usually make, but our process was for the most part... in the first half it was good. We got a little stagnant there in the second half.”

A big part of Coulibaly's growing game this season has been his ability to drive into the lane, which is an aspect that he has put extra work in during his time with the Wizards.

"I had a good stretch and I had a bad stretch too," Coulibaly said. "Every basketball player got that ... When I be driving to the rim, when I am aggressive, that is when I feel confident and everything goes well."

Keefe has been feeding Coulibaly that confidence, giving him the green light to be himself and drive into the lane, and the Wizards coach believes that is what helps make him a better basketball player.

“That’s his talent. He can get in the paint," Keefe said.

"That’s one of the things he’s really good at is he has the ability to, no matter where people are guarding him, to get downhill, touch the paint, make plays. He did a good job of that," he continued.

If Coulibaly can continue to be a threat in that part of the court, it opens up so much for the Wizards, so that is something Washington hopes will continue.

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