By Pierre-Andréa Fraile | Sports journalist
Surprise guest in the Hornets rotation at the start of the season, Moussa Diabaté takes full advantage of this opportunity. The Americans in any case seem won over by his qualities, which according to them would make him the best in the league in one area.
His change of direction which took place last summer would have almost gone unnoticed. It must be said that Moussa Diabaté had until now made very little mention of himself in NBA. After only 33 appearances in the Clippers jersey in the space of two years, his future in the league even seemed blocked. The Hornets, however, decided to give him a chance and have not yet had to regret it.
Holder of a two-way contract in Charlotte, the young French interior has so far taken part in all of his franchise’s matches this season. Better yet, he recently received significant playing time and took the opportunity to shine in a very good way on the field. What to attract praise from teammates and coacheswithout however really reaping the benefits in recent days.
Moussa Diabaté unfairly treated at the Hornets?
After four matches played in a Sixth Man role, Diabaté has recently found a more modest place on the Hornets bench. Against Cleveland and Brooklyn, he only played a total of 27 minutes. A management which may surprise on the part of Charles Lee, even more so when looking at certain statistics of the French big man. These were reported by the influential account X KlawWrld :
Moussa Diabaté is perhaps the best interior defender in the NBA today. He has the best defensive rating in the league despite playing in a team not really known for its defense. He grabbed more rebounds than all the centers he faced and against whom he played more than 23 minutes this season. He also ranks second among centers in offensive rebounding, just behind Kevon Looney.
With a defensive rating of 96.5, Diabaté actually displays one of, and not the best marks in the league in this area. However, this remains a very honorable data, just like those relating to his qualities as a rebounder, which are also somewhat disguised in his favor. Other American Internet users are therefore surprised by its seemingly frozen status in Charlotte despite favorable conditions:
@BSanders2520 : I have literally never seen a player improve exponentially with every possession like that, even offensively. He’s starting to make serious progress and the crazy thing is the Hornets are playing Grant Williams over 30 minutes per game at center while this guy is on the bench.
@DiabateMuse : How can he still be a substitute… With all these injuries, we should start him.
Already praised previously for his rebounding performance, Moussa Diabaté was also praised for his defensive slaughter, among the best in the NBA in the interior sector. All that remains is to hope that this will translate into his playing time.
