March Has Revived Washington Wizards Forward’s Offense

At the beginning of the season, Washington Wizards forward Bilal Coulibaly had many questions surrounding his long-term position with the team. After the rise of Kyshawn George during FIBA’s AmeriCup tournament, Coulibaly seemed to be slowly losing favor. Thumb surgery ended his rather unimpressive run with France during FIBA’s EuroBasket tournament. After lackluster performances and another half-season of low production, the third-year wing seemed primed for an ungraceful exit from the DMV.

However, over the last month, Coulibaly’s numbers have not just improved, but taken major jumps forward. With each passing game, Coulibaly’s role in D.C continues to grow, and he may once again be considered a real cornerstone of the young core.

March Has Revived Washington Wizards Forward’s Offense

While Coulibaly’s newfound production hasn’t been mainstream, it’s been more than impressive. It hasn’t helped the Wizards win, since they have been winless since February 20th. However, isn’t that the goal right now? Let the young guys do it all, even if it means losing the rest of the season. Coulibaly has taken the tank and flipped it into a positive beyond securing a 14% chance at the number one pick.

In such a crucial season for the young forward, he’s finally begun showing what he could truly become.

Newfound Production

So far in March, Coulibaly has shown a considerably stronger offensive skillset. Through his last 10 games, the forward has averaged 15.7 points on 44% shooting from the field, with a remarkable 41.2% from three. Not only do those shooting splits top his career averages, but his three-point shooting has rapidly improved. In January, Coulibaly was shooting 28% from three on 2.5 attempts per game. He’s now shooting over five threes and converting on almost half of them.

The newfound shooting ability has been on display throughout March. He’s dropped 20+ points four times this month and has only shot under 40% in three contests. Against the Golden State Warriors, Coulibaly scored 21 points on 70% shooting from the field. He followed it up with an 8-15 game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, dropping another 21. However, his best game came against the Orlando Magic on March 12, where he dropped 29 points and hit five threes.

Can He Maintain It?

After a career-reviving month, can Coulibaly continue this level of consistent production? Most of the roster has suffered from a lack of offensive consistency these past few seasons. Coulibaly isn’t alone, but can he be the one to break the mold?

The Wizards’ offense will be reshaped when both Anthony Davis and Trae Young are on the floor. Coulibaly’s rising percentages could indicate a three-and-D role moving forward; looking at the data, it becomes apparent. The Wizards forward has often been used as a spot-up shooter. His corner shooting is above the league average, and he’ll need to push it further to make himself a real and guarded threat from outside.

With the playmaking ability of Young and George, all Coulibaly needs to worry about is hitting those shots when he gets the ball. His emerging spot-up role has already started to pay off. While he does suffer from inconsistency, he’s thrived with the simplified role. With that, the Wizards still need to develop his shooting, as the majority of his shots will come from outside next season.

So, can he keep it up? He should be able to. Just comparing his splits from the beginning of the season to now, it’s obvious he can still push this production further. He won’t be the league’s next Klay Thompson, but he can open up an entirely new offense. He’s been reliable, but improving his marks could make Washington nearly unstoppable next season.