Cheick Diallo: What are your expectations from him?

I was at the game last night, and I kept a close eye on Cheick to see just how he would perform, and to see how he has grown over the summer.

He didn't look to force anything, and even his misses were good misses (5 ft shots, only 3 fg attempts). So he isn't looking to be the focus on offense (and he wasn't asked to be given who he was sharing the court with last night), but his defensive presence was real. He was very active, and he re-routed a few shots. He looks bigger than last year, but he has the type of body that isn't going to go from Manute Bol to Oliver Miller, but he looked stronger rather than bulky. That should only help him as he will be asked to play the 4 and the 5.

My question is, what do we honestly expect from Diallo in this big rotation? I see him getting 15-20 min a game as the 1st big off the bench. I think he takes 6-7 shots a game, but he will make his living playing defense. He spent his summer prepping for a jump in production, and it will pay off.

I would guess he's seen as an unknown by the staff. A bonus if he proves to be decent at anything. He's interesting because he could have either no role or a large (backup) role depending on injuries and tactics. If Gentry tries to play small ball all the time, I can see Cunningham getting minutes instead of Diallo and Diallo barely playing. If Gentry comes to his senses and tries rebounding like crazy and slowing the game down, then Diallo could have a decent role.

I see him in the regular rotation. He'll only get better with playing time.

to be honest I didnt see anything special from him in this game.

6 fouls.

Diallo has to learn and become a smarter player. Physically he looks like he has what it takes to be a possible contributor. He fouls too much.

I hope Gentry gives him limited minutes because the NBA is so brutal now and we can't afford too many mistakes. I will be happy if Diallo scores 6-10ppg and isn't a liability by fouling too much. If Diallo gets more confident and learns the game better I think he will surprise everyone.


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Keep in mind Diallo was the youngest player in last year's draft and he literally just had his 21st birthday like 2 weeks ago. He's still raw. The D League helped last year but it's a whole new beast getting minutes in an actual NBA game.

He picked up fouls a lot of the time because he wasn't used to the player he was going against and got out of position. Then 1 or two of the fouls was him contesting a shot where he went straight up but got called because the other player initiated contact. It's all a learning process.

The good news is, unlike Ajinca who's foul troubles come from him being slow and rotating late, Diallo doesn't have that problem. He moves fast, plays with a lot of energy, and is probably already our 3rd best rebounder. He got 6 in his 15ish minutes and had another long tap out and a couple that he got a hand on almost got. Basically, if there was a ball to rebound he was around the rim trying to grab it.

His minutes will be predicated on how well he can adjust to defending NBA players. Practicing against AD and Cousins is surely going to make him better. His offense will be put backs and cuts to the basket and that's fine. He has a jumper but his off ball movement could be a big factor for our 2nd unit offense. He's going to be too fast for most bigs so if he can learn to finish through contact he can draw a good number of fouls.

My expectation for him is to get a decent number of minutes early and if he shows he can handle it throughout the season. He is basically our defacto 3rd big right now and he has more upside than Ajinca once he returns so he's going to get every opportunity. Improve the defense and he will be able to eat up a good number of big minutes which would be huge for us this year.

His energy and rebounding impressed me. These were hard fought, in the weeds rebounds. Also had a nice Tyson Chandler style tap out. Very Faried like minus the fouls.

But carry on as usual emos. Carry on.

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Originally Posted by Mythrol

Keep in mind Diallo was the youngest player in last year's draft and he literally just had his 21st birthday like 2 weeks ago. He's still raw. The D League helped last year but it's a whole new beast getting minutes in an actual NBA game.

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Nah there's someone who still hasn't turned 21 but is a beast already from that draft

I see him as someone that will get very little playing time and a lot of DNPs. I think his playing time is dependent on foul trouble and injuries in the front court. There is just not enough minutes for him. Davis and Cousins will gobble up a lot of minutes. Cunningham will play some as a stretch 4. I think even Miller will see some time as a 4 in limited minutes with talks of 3 and 4 guard lineups. Also, Ajinca would likely get some minutes.

Plus, Diallo needs to tidy up on defense. He’s a liability out there, right now. But I’m sure he will grow into becoming a better defender.

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Originally Posted by AusPel

Nah there's someone who still hasn't turned 21 but is a beast already from that draft

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Who and how many actual minutes did he get last year against NBA players as opposed to Diallo?

Yeah I can only think of one name and he sure as hell didn't "beast" last year.

Are you thinking of Devin Booker who is still only 20?

Booker would definitely be one choice, but he's also a guard, not a big man.

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Originally Posted by luckyman

But carry on as usual emos. Carry on.

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Who are you referring to? Every post was complimentary aside from a single post saying that he fouls often and one saying he didn't see anything special that one game. Are you just lashing out against fake opposition with some righteous indignation? Who is being emo? Is that really crossing the line to you?

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Originally Posted by Mythrol

Booker would definitely be one choice, but he's also a guard, not a big man.

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This is a fun game as I am now trying to figure out, who is younger than Diallo, a big , and is having a big impact. Is it Chriss?

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Originally Posted by Jabberwalker

Who are you referring to? Every post was complimentary aside from a single post saying that he fouls often and one saying he didn't see anything special that one game. Are you just lashing out against fake opposition with some righteous indignation? Who is being emo? Is that really crossing the line to you?

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Every post was complimentary? Are we reading the same things? The only positive posts in this thread were mine and Mythrol's. I see at 4 that were emo negative. One said he's only expecting 6 fouls. Another said he's just a liability at this point. Should I go on? Are we reading and counting the same or what?

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Originally Posted by Mythrol

Booker would definitely be one choice, but he's also a guard, not a big man.

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But Booker wasn't from that draft. He's got an extra year on his belt. So Auspel's comment is confusing to say the least.

the same as when we traded for cousins....on our g-league team or traded....i have said that i didnt think gentry and Dell would depend on a raw player like diallo to be the backup big knowing that their job is on the line this season......

21 is not super young to be starting your second year. Brandon Ingram just turned 20 last month...Jamal Murray won't be 21 until February...etc.

If DC indeed starts at the three, he will need to be a rotation level big man. Cunningham would still be our "3rd big" as he'd probably move over to 4 when one of the towers sits, but he wouldn't be able to play all the remaining minutes. That'd leave like, 5-10 for him or Ajinca, and our style is probably not conducive to Ajinca.

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Originally Posted by ml wave

21 is not super young to be starting your second year. Brandon Ingram just turned 20 last month...Jamal Murray won't be 21 until February...etc.

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On what planet? Just because you can point out two younger players doesn't mean it isn't super young. Neither of the guys you mentioned are even close to starter level material in the NBA. Why? They are YOUNG.

Good grief.

On the planet where one and dones exist? Both Ingram and Murray are way closer to being starter level material than Diallo...though that's not even the point.

I believe in Diallo, but the problem is if we expect significant contribution we might have to wait a few years which we might not have

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Originally Posted by ml wave

On the planet where one and dones exist? Both Ingram and Murray are way closer to being starter level material than Diallo...though that's not even the point.

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You mean two players selected in the top 7 of the draft and play on the wings while also getting a full season of minutes playing in the NBA compared to a guy who was drafted in the 2nd round, is a big, and played very limited minutes in college and the NBA last season?

Now let's look at that claim they have shown more...

Diallo in his NBA minutes posted a better PER than both, a better 2 2pt % than both, had a TS% better than Ingram and within 0.8% of Murray without attempting a single 3pt shot, has 6x the better offensive rebounding rate of both, double the defensive rebounding rate and total rebounding rate of both, double the block %, and almost half the turnover % of both, all while having a usage in between both.

So even if we based it off of your asinine statement of who is "starter level material" Diallo would blow both of them out of the water there too.

Lol, I didn't come up with "starter level material", I was responding to luckyman. That Ingram and Murray are better than Diallo isn't really up for debate at this point, shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone (there's a reason they were drafted much higher, as you note), and isn't a knock on Diallo.

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Originally Posted by ml wave

Lol, I didn't come up with "starter level material", I was responding to luckyman. That Ingram and Murray are better than Diallo isn't really up for debate at this point, shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone (there's a reason they were drafted much higher, as you note), and isn't a knock on Diallo.

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Except, it is. Diallo has shown more *in NBA minutes* than either one and his numbers back this up. He's just been given much less of a chance.