Washington Wizards wing Bilal Coulibaly is expected to miss four to six weeks with a right hamstring injury, the team said in a release Thursday. A team spokesperson called the injury a strain.
Coulibaly, the No. 7 pick in the 2023 draft, could miss the rest of his second NBA season with the injury, suffered in Monday’s loss to the Toronto Raptors. The regular season ends April 13.
The Wizards don’t expect Coulibaly to need surgery, according to a team spokesperson. The injury is not expected to affect his offseason training.
Coulibaly is averaging 12.3 points, five rebounds and 3.4 assists while shooting 42.1 percent from the field and 28.1 percent from three.
Less than nine minutes into the loss to Toronto, Coulibaly seemed to lose his grip on the rim after a dunk, flipping in midair and landing hard on his right side. He shot a free throw before exiting the game and was ruled out with right hamstring tightness.
The Wizards’ injury report for Tuesday’s game against the Detroit Pistons listed Coulibaly out with a right hip contusion. He still has the contusion, but the MRI exam offered clarity and a diagnosis of the hamstring injury, per a team spokesperson.
The injury ends a choppy sophomore season for Coulibaly, the Wizards’ first selection under team president Michael Winger and GM Will Dawkins. He also missed the last 15 games of his rookie campaign — one where he showed defensive flashes but was limited offensively — with a fractured right wrist.
Coulibaly used that time to his advantage, bettering his left hand. He returned from the injury to compete for the French national team in the Paris Olympics. He entered his second NBA season with newfound confidence, a bigger role in the Wizards’ offense and raised expectations.
Those only grew after an impressive start to the season: Through his first five games, Coulibaly was averaging 19.4 points and 6.2 rebounds, shooting 60.7 from the field and 47.6 percent from three.
But he severely dropped off from there. His long-range shooting struggles allowed defenses to sag away from him and cut off driving lanes to the rim, where he is at his best.
Coulibaly continued his strong defensive play, ranking 36th in the league in stocks (steals plus blocks), per TeamRankings, and 27th in deflections, per NBA.com. He also notched his first career triple-double in February.
