Hamidou Diallo

Hamidou Diallo's Biography

Hamidou Diallo, born on July 31, 1998, is a noted professional basketball player of American origin. As of now, he is a member of the Shanxi Loongs team, associated with the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). His journey started from the college basketball period, playing for Kentucky Wildcats. A five-star prospect by consensus, he was among the leading basketball players of the 2017 batch. His crowning achievement in the early part of his career was winning the 2019 Slam Dunk Contest.

In his freshman and sophomore years, Diallo studied at John Bowne High School, situated in Flushing, New York. Here, he put up an impressive performance on the court, averaging 17.1 points, 6.6 rebounds per game, along with 2.7 assists during his sophomore year. Diallo also got the opportunity to attend Putnam Science Academy.

During the summer of 2015, Diallo participated in the Under Armour Association Circuit (UAA) on behalf of the AAU team, the New York Jayhawks. His performance was noteworthy, with an average of 22.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. His skills on the court earned him an invitation to both the NBPA Top 100 and Adidas Nations camps. When he was transitioning to his junior year, Diallo transferred to Putnam Science Academy located in Putnam, Connecticut. His statistics for that period included 17.0 average points per game and 4.0 rebounds, contributing significantly to Putnam’s overall (35–7) record.

In the summer of 2016, Diallo aligned with the AAU team, the New York Rens, a part of the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL) Circuit. With prodigious averages of 18.6 points and 2.1 assists, he led the Rens to the season-ending Peach Jam. Diallo carried his impressive form into his senior year (2016–17) with 19.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 3.0 assists on average. His skillful gameplay played a crucial part in guiding the Mustangs to an exceptional (38–3) record.

Diallo’s performance on the court made him one of the top players in the 2017 recruiting class, earning him glowing reviews from Scout.com, Rivals.com, and ESPN. Amidst considerable interest from several institutions including the University of Kentucky, University of Arizona, Indiana University, University of Kansas, Syracuse University, and the University of Connecticut, Diallo chose to commit to the University of Kentucky on January 7, 2017. This decision led him to graduate a semester early, consequently joining the Wildcats midseason.

Despite declaring for the 2017 NBA draft along with a record-high 182 players, Diallo didn’t play a single college game, owing to his late entry into the program. However, on May 24, 2017, Diallo decided to return to Kentucky to participate in their 2017–18 season, turning a deaf ear to draft scouts predicting he could have made it to the first round of that year’s draft. During that season, Diallo’s averages were 10.0 points and 3.6 rebounds per game.

Making his mark on the basketball world, Diallo got selected with the 45th pick in the 2018 NBA draft by the Brooklyn Nets on June 21, 2018. His draft rights subsequently got traded to the Charlotte Hornets, and later to the Oklahoma City Thunder. He officially signed his rookie-scale contract with Thunder on July 28, 2018, marking his arrival in the NBA. In his debut game on October 16, 2018, despite the Thunder’s loss to the Golden State Warriors, Diallo managed four points, a rebound, an assist, and a steal, coming off the bench.

His basketball career further ascended when he scored a career-high 18 points with two steals, a rebound, and an assist on November 19, 2018, notwithstanding a 113–117 loss to the Sacramento Kings. Boxing his way into the history books, Diallo won the NBA Slam Dunk Contest on February 16, 2019, becoming the first player from Oklahoma City Thunder ever to achieve this feat. The highlight of the contest was the moment when he jumped over basketball legend, Shaquille O’Neal, enacted the “honey dip” dunk popularized by Vince Carter, displayed a Superman undershirt while hanging from the rim and jumped over rapper Quavo to finish it with two hands.

On March 13, 2021, Diallo kicked off a new chapter in his career after being traded to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and a future second-round draft pick. He signed a two-year $10.4 million rookie-scale extension with the Pistons on August 19, 2021. Unfortunately, an avulsion fracture in his left index finger ruled him out for the rest of the 2021–22 season on March 25, 2022. Soon after, on December 29, 2022, Diallo faced a suspension by the NBA for a game without pay, following an altercation during a game against the Orlando Magic the day before.

Diallo’s career faced another setback on March 6, 2023, during a 110–104 loss against the Portland Trail Blazers. He suffered a right ankle injury, diagnosed as a grade 2 sprain on March 7, 2023. Pistons head coach Dwane Casey, during a press conference the same day, confirmed that Diallo would not be participating in the rest of the 2022–23 season.

On October 21, 2023, Diallo embarked on a new journey by signing with the Washington Wizards. However, due to unforeseen circumstances, he was waived off the same day, and joined the Capital City Go-Go on October 30. The Wizards reestablished their interest by signing Diallo for a 10-day contract on January 9, 2024, but he went back to Capital City on January 19th.

Hamidou Diallo got a fresh start in his basketball career when he signed with the Shanxi Loongs of the Chinese Basketball Association on September 11, 2024. Meanwhile, Diallo also participated in international games. He represented the under-18 United States national basketball team in the FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship game in 2016, which led them to a gold medal, and later on won a bronze medal at the 2017 FIBA Under-19 Basketball World Cup in Egypt.

Diallo’s journey began in LeFrak City, Queens, New York. He attended JHS 157 Stephen A. Halsey in his formative years. Being of Guinean heritage, he enjoys a rich cultural background, as his parents, Abdoulaye and Mariama, immigrated to the U.S. from Guinea.