Selected in 11th position of the last Draft by the Thunder, Ousmane Dieng arrived in the ideal environment to make the transition from the NBL to the NBA while taking his marks within a very young team.
As for his little comrades, it’s time to take stock after the ousting of the Thunder in “play-in”.
” I feel good. Unfortunately, we lost to Minnesota, but overall it was a great season for the team. We can continue to progress”, said the 19-year-old Frenchman. “It’s been a very long season, so I’ve improved on and off the pitch. It’s the longest season I’ve played. I learned never to see myself too high or too low, because there are so many matches”.
The big downside of the season was his wrist fracture contracted in December, which inevitably slowed him down.
“It was tough at the start, right after the injury, because I was starting to play well. I could still practice, and play with my left hand. So it was fine. It wasn’t like it was a leg injury. I was just focusing on what I could control to try and get back as fast as possible.”
Work on his body and his game
The winger, on the other hand, benefited from the presence of Luguentz Dort, French-speaking, and his compatriot Olivier Sarr, to facilitate his integration. He also took advantage of his 9 G-League games with the OKC Blue to keep up the pace (17.2 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists on average in 9 games).
“Both teams try to work on the same things, which made it easy for me to switch from one structure to another”.
The next six months will now be at least as important as the previous ones for Ousmane Dieng in his mission to progress, while the objective for next year will be to see more of the field.
“The off-season is going to be very important for me. I have to work on my body, keep working on my shooting and all my game in general.he continued. “I learned that I could play in this league. I can play hard, evolve and defend in several positions. It’s a difficult league, the season is very long. There are very good players in all the teams.
| Ousmane Dieng | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2022-23 | OKAY | 39 | 15 | 42.0 | 26.5 | 65.2 | 0.5 | 2.2 | 2.7 | 1.2 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 5.0 |
| Total | 39 | 15 | 42.0 | 26.5 | 65.2 | 0.5 | 2.2 | 2.7 | 1.2 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 5.0 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Shots made / Shots attempted; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def= defensive rebound; Tot = Total bounces; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost bullets; Ct: Counters; Points = Points.
