NBA veteran and winner of the 2019 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, Hamidou Diallo, has agreed to terms with Spanish basketball powerhouse Baskonia.
The one thing that has always been evident in Diallo's game is explosiveness. Standing at a chiseled 6-5 and owning a 44.5" vertical leap, Diallo can be nearly unstoppable when he gets a full head of steam.
A top prospect out of high school, Diallo was a five-star recruit who briefly played at Kentucky before he entered the NBA Draft in 2018. The swingman was selected by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round.
Diallo made his mark in the NBA as a scoring and energy guy off the bench. He had a breakout season in 2020-2021, playing for the Thunder before being traded to the Detroit Pistons midseason. He averaged a career-high 11.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.
The explosive wing had two more successful seasons for the Pistons and played briefly for the Washington Wizards before moving over to China for the 2024-25 season.
Diallo looked like a star for the Shanxi Loongs in China. During his one season in the Chinese Basketball Association, he averaged 22.1 points per game and 7.3 rebounds. He was named the league's Player of the Week three different times.
The swingman will now be taking his talents to Baskonia in the EuroLeague. The team has had plenty of success and has also featured several notable former NBA players like Chase Budinger, Lamar Odom, Shane Larkin, and Casey Jacobsen.
