Killian Hayes lives again in Detroit, the opportunist youth, Rudy Gobert is looking for Wolves, Evan Fournier without issue: second point of the season for our French expatriates with Uncle Sam.
Every week, Basket Europe offers you a complete overview of the performance of our French from abroad. Each month, we also take stock with the main expatriates in the United States (NBA, G-League, NCAA).
Criticized for his catastrophic start to the shooting season, Killian Hayes silenced his detractors. Since the absence of the leader of the Pistons, Cade Cunningham, last November 9, the French combo guard takes its responsibilities. His skill at more than 30% in shooting no longer appears as much of a handicap and his overall involvement in the game makes him a centerpiece of Detroit. Aggressive and more sure of himself, Killian Hayes is therefore better. His 2020 Draft companion, Theo Maledon, is also making his place in the Hornets hive, despite a “precarious” two-way contract for his future in the NBA. Established two days ago against Boston, he brought – in a defeat – his 11 points, 8 assists, 4 rebounds and 3 steals to the Charlotte collective.
Younger still, Moussa Diabate (20 years old) is illustrated this week with the Clippers. Bringing all his versatility and energy off the bench, he came out with the best +/- of his team at +19 in a success against Portland. The next day against the Jazz, he continued his momentum with 11 points and 8 rebounds captured in 16 minutes of play. As he continues to evolve between G-League and NBA, his repeated prowess could catch the eye by coach Tyronn Lue.
His compatriot from the Thunder Ousmane Dieng knows, more or less, the same ascent. After a boost of confidence following his six-game stint in the G-League averaging 33 minutes of play, he continues his apprenticeship in the Thunder rotation. A mark of 10 points and 7 rebounds in a victory against the Spurs in the opening of the month of December does him the greatest good.
The leaders of the Blues in trouble
Are the Timberwolves already regretting the transfer of Rudy Gobert? In seven weeks of competition, Gobzilla is not yet ready with its new franchise. In the soft underbelly of the Western Conference, Minnesota lacks consistency in its twenty or so games without showing any progress in defense, as the Minneapolis front office would have hoped with the recruitment of Rudy Gobert. With the absence of Karl Anthony Towns until the beginning of 2023, this is an opportunity for him to put himself forward. He will find more of the phases of play he was accustomed to at the Jazz and will take advantage of the space left by KAT to improve his relationship on the floor with the other major players in the pack, Anthony Edwards and D’Angelo Russell.
More worrying case still, that of Evan Fournier sidelined by his coach Tom Thibodeau since November 13. The hour is serious for the captain of the Blues who is no longer part of the rotation of the Knicks, after having started the season in the starting 5. Arrived in the summer of 2021, Evan Fournier is now patient on the bench of a team with a negative balance sheet, without understanding the reasons for such a decision, apart from the possible difficulty Thibodeau has in integrating him into his system. To date, his future in New York is very mixed. A way out is to be found for the Frenchie, before his rating collapses completely.
The statistics of the French in the NBA
Rudy Gobert (Minnesota Timberwolves)
10 wins – 11 losses | 11th in the Western Conference
13.8 points on 64.0% on shots, 12.4 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, 1.5 loss of balls and 0.9 assists in 32 minutes (19 games)
Evan Fournier (New York Knicks)
10 wins – 11 losses | 10th in Eastern Conference
6.9 points on 34.4% on shots, 2.1 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.7 steals and 1.1 loss of balls in 20 minutes (13 games)
Nicolas Batum (Los Angeles Clippers)
13 wins – 10 losses | 5th in the Western Conference
4.4 points on 41.0% on shots, 4.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.6 steals, 0.8 blocks and 0.9 loss of balls in 19 minutes
Killian Hayes (Detroit Pistons)
5 wins – 18 losses | 15th in the Eastern Conference
7.1 points on 33.9% on shots, 4.4 assists, 2.7 rebounds, 1.0 steals and 1.7 loss of balls in 24 minutes
Theo Maledon (Charlotte Hornets)
6 wins – 15 losses | 13th in the Eastern Conference
5.4 points on 45.6% shooting, 2.5 assists, 2.4 rebounds, 1.3 loss of balls and 0.8 steals in 17 minutes (19 games)
Ousmane Dieng (Oklahoma City Thunder)
8 wins – 13 losses | 12th in the Western Conference
3.3 points on 31.8% on shots, 2.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.4 against and 0.5 loss of ball in 15 minutes (11 matches)
Moussa Diabate (Los Angeles Clippers)
13 wins – 10 losses | 5th in the Western Conference
4.3 points on 60.0% on shots, 3.5 rebounds, 0.3 assists and 0.5 steals in 9 minutes (4 games)
Joel Embiid (Philadelphia Sixers)
14 wins – 6 losses | 1st in Eastern Conference
32.1 points on 51.9% on shots, 9.9 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 4.4 loss of balls and 1.8 blocks in 35 minutes (13 games)
The statistics of the French in the G-League
Joel Ayayi (Lakeland Magic)
11.6 points on 62.4% on shots, 6.1 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.4 steals and 2.0 loss of balls for 18.4 rating in 33 minutes (10 games)
Sidy Cissoko (G-League Ignite)
8.7 points on 42.3% on shots, 3.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 0.7 steals and 1.6 loss of balls for 9.0 evaluation in 27 minutes (9 games)
Rescue Doumbouya (Delaware Blue Coast)
3.3 points at 30.0% on shots, 2.8 rebounds, 0.6 assists, 0.1 steals and 0.6 loss of balls for 3.5 rating in 12 minutes (8 games)
Adam Mokoka (Oklahoma City Blue)
10.6 points on 49.2% on shots, 4.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.9 steals and 1.4 loss of balls for 12.4 evaluation in 28 minutes (9 games)
NCAA French stats
Joshua Mballa (Ore Miss)
3.3 points at 54.5% on shots, 2.3 rebounds and 0.7 loss of ball for 4.2 evaluation in 8 minutes (6 matches)
Eddy Kayouloud (Central Arkansas)
15.5 points on 42.1% on shots, 5.0 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 1.8 steals and 1.5 loss of balls for 13.3 rating in 30 minutes (4 games)
Daniel Batcho (Texas Tech)
12.5 points on 59.1% on shots, 7.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.0 steals, 1.3 loss of balls and 1.8 blocks for 18.5 rating in 26 minutes ( 6 games)
Yvan Ouedraogo (Gran Canyon)
4.2 points on 81.8% on shots, 5.4 rebounds, 0.4 assists, 0.4 steals and 0.6 loss of balls for 8.8 rating in 22 minutes (5 games)
Yohan Traore (Auburn)
4.5 points at 41.7% on shots, 2.7 rebounds, 0.2 assists and 0.8 loss of balls for 2.7 evaluation in 15 minutes (6 matches)
Honey to the Man (Arizona)
4.7 points on 38.9% on shots, 2.0 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 0.5 steals and 0.7 loss of balls for 4.8 rating in 17 minutes (6 matches)
Kymany Houinsou (Washington State)
6.2 points at 50.0% on shots, 2.6 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 2.0 loss of balls for 5.2 evaluation in 18 minutes (5 games)
Alex Tchikou (Rhode Island)
5.3 points on 57.1% on shots, 4.5 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 0.5 steals and 1.0 loss of balls for 8.0 rating in 17 minutes (4 games)
Josaphat Bilau (Rhode Island)
4.7 points at 35.7% on shots, 6.7 rebounds, 0.7 assists, 0.7 against and 1.7 loss of balls for 7.3 evaluation in 20 minutes (3 matches)
Quentin Diboundje (East Carolina)
9.8 points on 51.7% on shots, 1.2 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.2 steals and 0.4 loss of balls for 8.4 rating in 22 minutes (5 games)
Benjamin Bayela (East Carolina)
0.5 points at 0.0% on shots, 3.3 rebounds, 0.8 steals and 0.3 loss of balls for 1.0 evaluation in 14 minutes (4 games)
Alaaeddine Boutayeb (Arkansas State)
2.0 points at 80.0% on shots, 1.0 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 0.8 blocks and 0.5 loss of balls for 3.5 rating in 7 minutes (4 games)
Maxime Raynaud (Stanford)
8.3 points on 58.3% on shots, 5.7 rebounds, 0.7 assists, 1.0 against and 1.3 loss of balls for 11.0 evaluation in 19 minutes (6 games)
Kane Milling (UC Davis)
7.2 points on 47.2% on shots, 4.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 0.5 blocks and 1.5 loss of balls for 9.7 rating in 27 minutes (6 games)
Louis Lesmond (Harvard)
5.0 points on 32.0% on shots, 2.3 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.0 steals and 0.5 loss of balls for 4.8 rating in 21 minutes (4 games)
Photo : Killian Hayes