The Gonzaga Bulldogs are officially in the mix for Zoom Diallo, a 2024 point guard prospect from across the state in Tacoma, Washington.
Diallo doesn’t have a list yet, but he is taking an unofficial visit to Spokane on September 9. Diallo is a quick rising prospect whose talent could make him a fit just about anywhere, but there is a lot to like thinking about his skill-set in Mark Few’s offense.
“True point guard,” Sports Illustrated recruiting analyst Jason Jordan said when describing Diallo on the Locked on Zags podcast. “Great size, able to look over the defense like a quarterback and he plays like that. He’s going to really pick you apart on the offensive end. He’s always got his head on a swivel, eyes are up, he’s a guy who can throw to an area, that’s the kind of IQ he has.”
Diallo is definitely more of a distributor than a scorer at this stage in his development, although Jordan did go on to say his outside shot improved quite a bit toward the end of the summer circuit.
However, the rest of Jordan’s description reads like a scouting report one might create about Andrew Nembhard, or Nolan Hickman, a promising sign for Gonzaga’s recruiting pitch:
He’s a guy who’s going to run the show, not going to be sped up, going to play at his own pace. But he can score too. He can get to the basket, but he’s always looking to pass. They say pass first point guard, but he puts his teammates in the best position to score. He’s a guy who is going to put you in an optimal position to do what you do best.
Jason Jordan, Locked on Zags
Diallo sounds like an ideal plug-and-play point guard prospect for this Gonzaga squad in 2024, when it’s very possible Hickman is already out the door. While it’s impossible in the modern day to predict what a Gonzaga roster might look like even two years out, Diallo alongside Dusty Stromer, Efton Reid, Braden Huff, and potentially fifth year senior Dominick Harris would be some excellent basketball yet again.
So how is Few going to sell Diallo on joining Gary Bell, Steven Gray, and Corey Kispert as western WA guys who journeyed to Spokane?
“The thought is, if we flood you with all these talented scoring options and versatile playmakers, you’d 100 percent thrive, like Andrew did and all these other guys did,” Jordan explained. “Look at the success we’ve had in the past with guys like you.”
“So it’ll definitely resonate, that messaging for sure.”
Host – Locked on Zags Podcast
Writer – Ducks Wire