VIDEO: Play-by-Play Breakdown of Ismael Diouf and why he needs more minutes for NC State

When NC State landed Ismael Diouf this offseason, I was pretty excited.

I saw how great this system ran with a long, versatile, and dynamic 4 man just a season ago. Mo Diarra was a huge reason NC State was successful last March. His versatility, aggressiveness, size, and work on the boards were nearly as important as either DJ.

Diarra was 6’10, 215lbs, giving State great size and length, while still being able to spread the floor with his shooting ability. Losing him to the French Pro-League stunk, but getting Diouf seemed like a decent consolation prize.

Diouf is 6’9, 215lbs and while he might not be quite as aggressive just yet, he’s a little more coordinated and skilled than Diarra and I was excited to see him get acclimated to this level.

Unfortuntely, Diouf was suspended 2 games to start the season (playing in a non-sanctioned league / unpaid). But we’re now 10 games into the season and he’s only seen 16 minutes of action all season. However, I’ve found myself impressed over that short 16-minute span.

I wanted to make sure I wasn’t letting my excitement about his potential cloud my judgment of his current performance. So I went back and clipped every meaningful possession he had during his minutes vs. BYU and Coppin State.

What I found is that, I wasn’t being biased. Diouf was really playing well despite not having any kind of gaudy stat line that. In the video above, we take a look at all of those possessions and really breakdown the things he’s doing well (and why we think it’s time Keatts tries him at the 4 and Styles at the 3 against bigger lineups).

Let’s Examine:

Clip 1: Pump fake and drive
NC State doesn’t really have anyone above 6’6 who can put the ball on the floor and make something happen. In this clip Diof take the pass, does a quick shot fake on the close out and attacks the big, who fouls him. A pretty nice and aggressive drive there.

Clip 2: Box out and tip on the offensive boards
NC State has struggled on the offensive boards, so you’d think a versatile 6’9 kid might be worth a try. In this clip Breon Pass takes a 3, and Diouf immediately finds his man and hits him with a strong box out. While he doesn’t get the rebound, he does tip it out and keeps it alive. Unfortunately, BYU gets the loose ball.

Clip 3: Box out and defensive rebound (Then stolen)
BYU takes a 3 and Diouf immediately finds a body and boxes out. A nice strong, low box. The rebound it tipped by Jayden Talyor and Diouf wrestles it away from the BYU big. Unfortunately, a BYU guard is there to rip it out when he turns around. This is probably the only knock on Diouf. He’s new to this level so he’s still needing to figure out that teams are going to be scrapping even after you secure the board.

Clip 4: Quick drive and dish
Diouf catches the pass, sees a lane and doesn’t hesitate. He immediately hits the gap. As 2 guys clamp down on him he drops it back to BHH for an open jumper. His aggressive drive, without hesitation made this play possible.

Clip 5: Soft Hedges and Recovery
I LOVE how Diouf plays these high pick and rolls. There is no reason to extend all the way up there. So he hedges and slows down the driver while O’Connell can recover. Meanwhile, Diouf is already recovering back to his man, who is rolling to the hoop. He does this twice, allowing his 6’9 frame to have the shooter hesitant to shoot it, but he’s also giving him a step so there isn’t space to drive. This results in BYU making a poor cross-court pass resulting in a turnover.

Clip 6: Dunk Attempt
You probably remember this one. BYU is in an extended zone, leaving the middle pretty open. Pass finds BHH, who finds Diouf who is showing himself in the right space. He elevates to dunk over the back side zone defender who is coming to challenge it. This likely surprised Diouf, who missed the dunk (but seems to think he was fouled). Love the aggressive attack.

Clip 7: Switch and defending the post
BHH switches on the screen, leaving Diouf to guard the 5 man for BYU. Diouf does a good job of holding his ground and forcing the big into a contested jump hook that he misses.

Clip 8: 2x Hedge and Recover + Re-Fronting the Post
Great defensive positioning here all around. Again, his ability to defend the pick and roll looks about as good as any of the NC State bigs if not better. And at the end, he jumps back to front the post when it looks like there is an open angle for an entry pass. This surprises the ball handler who has decided to drive. Diouf seems to go straight up to contest the shot but is called for the foul. Great defensive positioning all around here.

Clip 9: Defending the 3 ball
Diouf gives up a long 3, but do you blame him? Coppin State had hit just one 3 prior to that. He could have been a step closer, but Coppin State had been abusing State on the drive all night. I think you take that deep 3 from a team shooting in the 20% range from long distance.

Clip 10: Post move and score
Diouf had a nice little, well-controlled post-move and score last night. He was actually wide open on the roll, but Hill missed him. O’Connell found him on the block and showcased great footwork faking to his left and then finishing with his right.

Clip 11: Box out
Just another nice box out on an NC State shot attempt

Clip 12: Switch and defending the drive
This is great position defense right here. Coppin State guard goes off a pick, Usually you see the NC State bigs try to stop the guard from turning the corner, but that opens up the drop off to the role man. Instead, realizing that he’s 6’9, Diof sags a big, allowing himself to guard the drive and cut off the angle for the drop off until Parker recovers. The Coppin State guard isn’t sure what to do with all of his options taken away. He tries to stop, but travels. Great defense.

Clip 13: Strong Post Defense
We’ve seen Diouf defend everything else, so what about a true isolation, back to the basket big man backing him down. No problem.  Diouf holds his ground and doesn’t bit on any fakes. The big is forced to kick it out.

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Going through the clips, and watching all of his time on the floor. I’d argue that Diouf is one of the more advanced defenders in NC State’s front court. He’s also showing signs of great aggressiveness on offense. He’s not hesitating, he’s making the right reads and he seems like a guy who would great a ton of matchup problems for opposing bigs.

So, maybe Keatts wants to bring him along slowly? Maybe he feels like Dennis Parker and Styles gives him more athletic options at the 4. Whatever the case, I think it’s pretty important at this point in the season to figure out ways to start increasing minutes for Ismael Diouf. He’s going to be really good and I’d argue that he’s maybe already deserving of playing a much bigger role on this team.