“ Thank you family !! », blurted out Bilal Coulibaly end of July on X/Twitter while the Wizards had just wished him his birthday. The “family” in question has adopted the 19-year-old Frenchman, who arrived in Washington after being selected in 7th position in the last Draft.
“ Everyone is there, taking care of me. Every day there is a guy who messages me to see if I need anything, hopefully », describes the person concerned in his interview with Le Parisien. One of his teammates seems particularly attentive to him: Jordan Poole. The latter, on the evening of the Draft, had sent a welcome message to the Frenchman.
In the locker room, the former Mets player says he had started to settle in “ deep down, quietly “. But the former Warriors player preferred to have the rookie at his side.
” (He) took my brochure to put it next to him, I’m not a loser. I always have a good seat and what’s more, I’m next to a good guy. He is open, attentive. He is there to help others. He will take me under his wing », Lists Bilal Coulibaly.
“A bright future” ahead of him
According to the latter, Stephen Curry’s former teammate, “ whenever he sees something wrong, he tells me and we both work on it. He takes time for me. He also asked me to teach him a few words in French. »
In return for this linguistic exchange, the fullback, expected to be the offensive leader of the team, will bring him experience. Jordan Poole, quoted by The Athleticpredicted for his rookie “ lots of ups, lots of downs, lots of progress. But he has already played professionally. It plays an important role in development, in what you are taught, in how you approach the game, pre-match, post-match, recovery. »
“ We give him a lot of information and you can see that he is very lively. Considering the amount of information he is given and what is demanded of him so quickly, he is great and never ceases to impress me “, adds Corey Kispert, according to whom the fact that he is a foreigner could have complicated the situation.
Bilal Coulibaly, who also received the support of compatriots who passed through the same franchise, Ian Mahinmi and Kevin Séraphin, seems to be adapting well to his new life. “ We know that he is of a high level, he knows that he is of a high level. We will continue to work with him, he is talented. He has a bright future “, finally assures Jordan Poole.
