WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Washington Wizards agreed in principle to acquire the draft rights to Bilal Coulibaly in a trade to be finalized later with the Indiana Pacers. Washington also selected Tristan Vukcevic with the 42nd overall pick.
“Bilal brings energy and ability on both sides of the floor and we see his trajectory continuing to trend upward as his play catches up to his elite physical attributes,” said Wizards General Manager Will Dawkins. “We feel that we improved the long-range outlook of our team tonight by adding him as a youthful, versatile and highly-skilled player.”
Coulibaly, who was selected seventh overall by the Indiana Pacers, is a 6-7, 190-pound swingman from Saint-Cloud, France. The 18-year-old split the 2022-23 season between the top pro league in France with the Metropolitans 92 and its under-21 league. With the senior team, he averaged 4.9 points and 3.0 rebounds per game in 28 games, shooting .532 from the field and .452 from three-point range. With the Metropolitans 92’s under-21 team, he averaged 21.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.6 steals in 16 games and scored 37 points against Fos-sur-Mer before permanently joining the senior team on January 18.
“Tristan has experience competing against some of the best competition in the world,” said Dawkins. “He has proven himself overseas to be an efficient big that can pass and shoot.”
Vukcevic, a 7-0, 225-pound forward of Italian and Serbian descent, has played overseas for Real Madrid in the Spanish ACB (2020-21) and KK Partizan Belgrade of the Adriatic League (Liga ABA). In 2022-23 with KK Partizan Belgrade, Vukcevic averaged 8.1 points and 3.2 rebounds in 14.3 minutes per game in 22 Adriatic League games.
The Wizards also traded the 57th overall pick in tonight’s draft to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for cash considerations.