Virginia Basketball: Mamadi Diakite poised for breakout 2019-20 season
By Neil Adler
Virginia Basketball’s Mamadi Diakite delivered the goods in the recently concluded Big Dance, and expect from him a stellar 2019-20 campaign.
When Virginia Basketball junior forward Mamadi Diakite performed at a subpar level in the 2019 Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament, collecting just five total points and zero rebounds in two contests, with his group bowing out in the semi-finals to Florida State, he asked for a meeting with head coach Tony Bennett, per this report on the CBS Sports Web site.
What Diakite, who grew up in Conakry, Guinea, would say to Bennett has profoundly resonated with me. “I told him I felt like I gave up on the team,” Diakite said in the CBS Sports article. “I didn’t play my best. I told him not to take [my performance] as ‘Mamadi is going backwards.’ I told him that I’m ready to make something happen. Something that he’s never witnessed in his life.”
Diakite surely lived up to his promise. After averaging 6.8 points and 3.7 boards in the 2018-19 stanza prior to the NCAA Tournament, Diakite significantly upped his game throughout the Cavaliers’ magical journey to the national title, tallying 13 points, nine rebounds and 2.25 blocks over six heart-stopping encounters.
And, then, there’s the shot. During UVA’s duel versus Purdue in the Elite Eight, Diakite netted an extremely challenging buzzer-beater to force overtime with the Boilermakers. The Cavaliers triumphed by five points in the extra session, Diakite got thrust into the spotlight, and Bennett secured his inaugural trip to the Final Four.
Over the course of 2018-19, Diakite unsurprisingly flew a tad under the radar, given Virginia’s trio of star guards, juniors Kyle Guy and Ty Jerome, along with sophomore De’Andre Hunter. While Hunter is widely projected to declare for this June’s NBA Draft, it’s not as clear as to what Guy and Jerome are likely to do. Regardless of their ultimate decisions, I’m confident in asserting that Diakite is well-positioned to produce a fantastic 2019-20 season for the Cavaliers, a crew that will again contend for a NCAA crown.
Not only has he proven his capabilities in the clutch moments, but Diakite also possesses a humble attitude, a refreshing character filled with self-awareness, a fiercely competitive spirit, and a cadre of skills on the court.
Next. Way-too-early ACC power rankings 2019-20. dark
According to the CBS Sports story, Bennett described Diakite as a X-factor for UVA since the beginning of the 2018-19 campaign. An appropriate depiction from an intelligent head coach. Now, as the Cavaliers seek to defend their championship, Diakite’s role will assumedly transition from a X-factor to a leading, and pivotal, piece.