Steve Popper: Mo Diawara's growth on court earns Knicks rookie more minutes
The Knicks' Mohamed Diawara against the Suns last month. Credit: AP/Frank Franklin II
In the stands at TD Garden on Sunday afternoon, the Boston fans, mostly adorned in New England Patriots gear and hours away from that disappointment, were focusing their energy and anger on Jalen Brunson, screaming taunts and booing him at every opportunity.
But as they watched a lanky, little-known late second-round draft pick do an assortment of unlikely things to help the Knicks dominate the Celtics, the fans seemed mostly confused and uncertain about Mo Diawara, who was putting an early damper on their day.
When the teams met in the second game of the season, Diawara didn’t get off the bench, which was not unusual; he never saw the floor in the first three games of the season. And the next time they met in December, Diawara got in for a total of seven seconds.
So when the 6-8 Diawara drove through the lane, hanging in the air and flipping in a lefthanded layup midway through the first quarter, it might have raised eyebrows. Or when he moved around a screen a few minutes later and confidently drained a three-point field goal. There was an aggressive jump hook in the second quarter and another three-point field goal as he scored all 10 of his points before halftime.
But while that may have been eye-opening, it was his defense that prompted coach Mike Brown to put him on the floor for a season-high 26:30 in the Knicks’ 111-89 win. With his 7-4 wingspan, Diawara may resemble a center on the floor, but he was tasked at different times with harassing Celtics star wing Jaylen Brown for the length of the court or stopping 6-1 Payton Pritchard.
“It was tough because they’re both great players, but I was ready to take the challenge to guard them,” Diawara said. “And I was happy the coaches put me on them because that means they think I’m a great defender, and I appreciate it.”
What the coaches and teammates think of him is an evolving thing. Expectations may have been light when the Knicks selected a then-19-year-old from France with the 51st pick. Draft projections spoke of his raw physical traits but profiled him as a likely draft-and- stash prospect, best left overseas to refine his game or sent to the G League to learn his craft.
But as the Knicks gathered before training camp, they saw hints that maybe he could help.
“Playing pickup before preseason, I could see he was really good and smart and talented,” Brunson said. “So I’m not surprised at what he’s able to do given the opportunity. He listens. He corrects his mistakes the next time. He’s working really hard. And this is only the beginning for him.”
“It’s been slow,” Brown said. “In training camp we were like, this kid might have something because he showed flashes. He showed flashes of it more offensively than defensively, not necessarily being a knock-down shooter, but making the right pass, making the right read. And then some of the little things, getting on the ground for loose balls, rebounding, stuff like that.”
His opportunities have come perhaps because of his potential, but also because of injuries and absences by veterans. Does he get more time Sunday if OG Anunoby isn’t sidelined with a toe injury?
“As time went on, it’s like, OK, we got to start trying to throw him out there with his length,” Brown said. “He’s growing pretty fast. Let’s get more of an opportunity. You guys have seen his growth. It’s been little by little. Sometimes we’ve thrown him out to start games and seeing how he responds when he starts games, big games. [It] has given us more confidence to put him on the floor.”
“I think the beginning of the year, training camp, everybody was like, he’s going to be good,” Josh Hart said. “And I think with him, it was just more about getting more comfortable, more experience, more minutes, those kinds of things. But he’s going to be extremely good. He’s extremely talented. Defensively, he can be all over the place, but offensively he’s knocking down shots. He’s really good especially when they guard him with bigs. He can knock down shots but also play in the pocket and play-make.”
Diawara has appeared in 43 games, and this wasn’t his best offensive performance. An 18-point, 7-for-9 shooting night in Portland might have been the highlight. But his work against the Celtics could have been his biggest, playing extended minutes in a huge game.
“I think: Just keep working,” Diawara said. “The coaches saw it in practice and saw I was practicing hard every day, and I think most of the time to get reps and get comfortable on the court, that’s how I get more minutes.”
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
